Ancient Love
by Persikitty
Summary: Irissia is the one and only princess of Northern Egypt. Unknown by her father, she has a mystery lover. What happens when one day her father tells her that she is to be in an arranged marriage to one of the princes of Southern Egypt? Will anyone ever find out about the identity of her mysterious lover? Also on Wattpad: /693699038-ancient-love-chapter-1-the-ne
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The News

From what I could tell, it was going to be a beautiful morning in Egypt. The sun was rising and as I started to slowly wake up, I heard a group of figures come walking into my currently dark room. One of the figures went to the window and opened the curtains, letting in the light from the morning sunrise as it shone bright in my room. While one of the figures gathered my clothes for the day, another prepared the water for my morning bath, and the others fetched my jewelry from the boxes and started to polish them, while the last one went to my bed and gently put a hand on my head.

"Your highness" I heard a sweet voice whisper into my ear. "Your highness" I heard the voice say to me again but this time a bit louder. I rolled over and pulled the covers over my head, hoping to get a few more minutes of sleep. "Your highness!" I heard the voice yell louder as the covers got yanked off of me. "What?" I replied in a groggy voice. "Good morning your highness. It is time to get up now. We must get you ready for the day" I heard the voice say. I felt hands go under my arms, lift me up, and forcing me to stand. I opened my eyes and saw the curtains being drawn open "Good morning Anukta" I said to her as she was making my bed. "Rahkorta. Hartatef" I said with a nod to the two men holding me up. "You are dismissed now. Go back to your duties" Anukta said to the guards who were still holding me up.

After being escorted to my private bath, I was then undressed and forced into the bath. "You have a very busy day today your highness" Anukta said as the other servants washed, lathered and rinsed my hair and body. After they were finished drying me off and brushing my long black hair, they rubbed fine scented oils on my body and started to dress me. "You look lovely as always your highness" Anukta said to me as she put my gold necklace on over my long, white tunic while everyone else put my other jewelry (such as earrings, bracelets, wrist cuffs, bracelets, armbands, rings, ect). "Come your highness. Sit" Anukta said to me as I sat down. She begun to brush and style my hair while another servant but down the mannequin head with my headpiece crown on it. "Anything yet?" I asked her hoping for some good news as she pulled tightly on my hair. "Nothing yet your highness. You must be patient. You replied to his letter yesterday morning" She reminded me as she put my headpiece on while another servant put my golden sandals on me. "There we are" she said as she helped me stand up and begun to make some final adjustments.

After getting my makeup on, Anukta, as well as the other servants and guards escorted me to the "audience chamber" as my father calls it. "Ahh. Welcome young princess" Markata, the royal advisor called to me as I entered the chamber to take my place upon my parents and older brothers. "Good morning all." I said as I bowed down to the floor to courtesy. "Father. Mother" I said as I remained in the position and bowed my head at them. "Ahem" I heard someone say as they cleared their throat. I looked over to see my brothers sitting on their thrones. "Brothers" I said as I stood up. I then began to walk over to my seat. "Horusaha, Napophsis, Anhuris" I said as I passed my 3 older brothers. After I sat down, the daily meetings begun. As the guests entered the room, they begun to prostrate themselves in front of us. One by one, they entered and begun to bow down to us. There were the ambassadors who were offering us tributes from foreign countries and then the generals were talking military matters with my father and brothers. After everyone left after taking their turn, my father stood up and ordered the guards and servants to get everything ready for what was next. After everyone lined up, my mother stood up and started walking out with my father. Next, my brothers, then me. All accompanied by guards. We walked out of the chamber and to the temple to pay tribute to the chief god, Amen-Re. Accompanied by the high priest, we walked through the great temple to the sanctuary. There was a cool breeze blowing through the open windows. I was enjoying the cool breeze and the thick smell of the incense. Once we were inside, we approached the statue of Amen-Re. My father asked the god some questions and received answers from the high priest. After the questions were over, my father was presented with a large bull. The high priest leads us in prayers and then after prayers, the sacred butcher walked in and slit the bull's throat as a sacrifice to the gods. Naturally, kept my eyes shut as I prayed for the bull's safe travels to the afterlife.

"Ahh" My father said as we walked out of the temple "There's nothing like a slaughter to work up a big appetite. Am I right?" My father looked at my brothers who were talking about the small details of the slaughter. After a while, we returned to the palace for some lunch. We all sat down at our extravagant, gold table and we were served drinks and lunch. Just like always, mother and I chose juice while my father and brothers choose beer. "My lord" Markata came in holding a scroll tied with a fancy red ribbon. He bowed before as my father took the scroll and begun to read the scroll. He read aloud matters such as how the construction for a statue in his honor is all going according to plan. After he read aloud the scroll, he rolled it back up and tied the ribbon back around it. "Oh and one more thing your highness" He said as he gave the scroll to one of the servants to put in the royal archives. "We received word from the royals of the South and all of the preparations have been made and they are ready for your journey to their lands, your highness" He said as he bowed to my father and handed him a piece of paper that he had hidden in his sleeve. "Excellent news Markata. That will be all" my father said as he grabbed the piece of paper and begun to read the details to himself. "Father" I said as I wiped my hands on my cloth napkin. "Why are you going to the South?" I said as I picked up my drink and begun to sip from the glass. "Not just me Irissia. You and your mother are coming with me. I have arranged for you to marry the prince of the South to rectify the union of our two lands" He said proudly as he held his glass up for a refill. I tried to hold my drink in my hand and tried not to spit it out. "An arranged marriage?! Why did you not tell me earlier?!" I exclaimed to my father who seemed quite pleased. "Because I knew that you would detest it and I really do not care about how you feel about it. It is ancient tradition and the plans have already been made. You are going to marry the prince of the South and that's final. We leave tomorrow afternoon after our daily outing to the city where you can say your goodbyes. We will get there that night and we will address the royal family the next morning" My father angrily explained to me as he finished his food and took a few more sips of his beer. After we were finished eating the servants came out to clear the table and whisked away our plates, silverware, cups and dirty napkins into the kitchen and wherever else to be cleaned and put away.

After washing up our hands and faces from lunch, we jumped into our royal chariot for a tour of the city while being surrounded by bodyguards. As we entered the city, crowds of Egyptians gathered in the streets to catch sight of their divine rulers. "Anuktata" I whispered to try to get her attention. She was enjoying the scenery and being able to get out and away from the palace. "Anuktata!" I whispered a little louder. "Your highness. Everything alright?" She replied. "Yes, everything is fine. Can you please go to the river and check to see if he replied yet?" I asked her as I whispered while trying not to let anyone else know. "Of course your highness" She said with a smile and a chuckle before leaving. "Thank you" I whispered a little louder hoping she heard it as she was leaving.

We ended up visiting some construction sites where magnificent new buildings were being constructed in my father's honor. While my father and brothers were overlooking the construction, I said my goodbyes to the citizens that I knew and the children that I got to watch grow up.

Back at the palace, I finally got a break from being surrounded by people and my family. I ordered the servants to help me change into something more loose fitting and comfortable. I sat down at my desk gazing at the sky. "Your highness. I have something for you" I heard Anuktata say. She handed me a green stained glass bottle with a rock tied to the bottom and a papyrus reed tied to the top. "Thank you very much Anuktata" I said excitedly as I took the bottle and opened it to reveal a small scroll inside. I took out the scroll and begun reading it. I couldn't help but feel elated whenever I received a reply from him. After I finished reading the paper inside the bottle, I couldn't help but grin from ear to ear and twirl around the room. I grabbed Anuktata's hands and twirled with her. "Oh my! Your highness!" Anuktata said as I couldn't help but giggle and grin. I stopped twirling and rushed over to my desk. I took out a piece of paper and my writing utensil to begin writing my reply back. I paused. "Oh my Rah" I put my writing utensil down and put my hands on my head. I sunk down in my chair. "Everything alright your highness?" Anuktata questioned me as she helped me to sit up in my chair like a proper princess should. "No" I said as I began to tear up. "I may never be able to see him again" I stood up and walked out onto my balcony. Anuktata followed me. "Your highness? What is the matter? You'll never be able to see who again?" She asked me as she walked out onto the balcony and stood beside me. I took a deep breath and begun to explain who 'HE' was. "When I was little, do you remember when I told you about the time I snuck away from my parents and how I met a boy by the Nile?" I asked her and she nodded. "Ever since that day, we have been communicating with this bottle and paper" I sighed and leaned against the railing. "I… I think that I may be in love with him. And now that I am being forced to marry someone else and I may never be able to see him again" I put my head down and shead a few tears. I glanced over at Anuktata who was starting to shed tears of her own. "Oh your highness!" She said as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "Don't lose hope! He lives in the region doesn't he? I could possibly help you to sneak out during the night so you can see him" She said excitedly as she grabbed my hand and was pulling me inside and to my desk. "Anuktata, you are a genius! What would I do without you?!" I said excitedly as I gave her a big hug. I sat down at my desk and began to write my reply. After I was done, I put my reply into the bottle and replaced the lid on it. "Hurry now Anuktata! If you get it into the water tonight, he may receive it in the morning! Now go! Go!" I handed her the bottle and she hid it in her tunic and rushed out of the room and to the water. After that disappointment and excitement, I was finally able to be alone and wander through beautiful gardens which my mother designed. After wandering the gardens and taking a break to go eat dinner with my family one last time before I marry a man I never met.

Dinner was mostly quiet. Only the sound of my brothers inhaling their meat, chugging down their beer, and ordering their servants to get them another refill of beer could be heard. Suddenly, my father cleared his throat. "Daughter." He said sternly as he wiped his mouth on his cloth napkin. I looked up at him. "All of your things are being transported and set up for you at the palace for our arrival tomorrow." I looked down at my plate. "Thank you father" I said in a quiet voice. After dinner, we all returned to the temple for the ceremony that marks the setting of the sun and the end of the day. After the ceremony, my family and I returned to the palace and retired to our rooms for bed. I was undressed, cleaned up and then dressed for bed. Once I was in bed, the servants set up their beds beside mine and as I lay awake in bed, I couldn't help but think about tomorrow and the days to follow.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: A New Start

The next day, I was woken up by Anuktata like usual. After being undressed, cleaned up, and then dressed for the day, I took a moment to take one last look around my what will be my old room. I admired the paintings on the walls one last time. "Everything alright your highness?" Anuktata asked me as I looked at my now nearly empty room. "What? Yes. Everything is... Everything is fine" I replied to her as I spaced out while walking around. I attended to the morning meetings and morning prayers like usual and after our morning duties were finished, we went on our daily outing like usual for the last time. When we went into town, I got to bid farewell to the people I knew and cared for. After bidding the people farewell one last time, we left and headed back for the palace. After getting back to the palace, I heard a familiar voice yelling. "Let me go right now! If you don't let me go right now you will be severely punished!" I heard the voice yell. I walked over to where the commotion was coming from and I saw my longtime friend Sharifa kicking and yelling at the guards. "Sharifa? What are you doing here?" I asked her as the guards let her go and she gave me a big hug. "Markata invited me here. He told me that the pharaoh requested my presence and now here I am!" She said as she straightened up her outfit. She and I were escorted inside the palace and to the table for my last meal with my family before going off to get married. We sat down to a feast of fruits, vegetables, meats and fine desserts. "So..." Sharifa said as she was stuffing her face full of fine chocolates and chugging down her drink. She wiped her mouth to speak. "What's with the feast?" She said as she begun to stuff her face full of food again. "I am getting married" I told her in a calm voice as I took a bite of the food on my plate. "You are what?!" She exclaimed loudly with a mouth full of food. She swallowed what was left in her mouth, took another drink and wiped her mouth. I put my hand over her hand to prevent her from shoving more food into her mouth. "I am getting married to the prince of the South. I leave later this afternoon" I took my hand off of hers and watched her sit back in her seat. "You are getting married?" she asked me again. Before I could speak, she slammed her hands on the table and stood up. "You are getting married!" She exclaimed excitedly. I took a sip out of my glass as I nodded at her. She jumped out of her seat and then began to pace back and forth talking nonsense to herself. "The preparations have already been made Sharifa. There is nothing to worry about. Now sit back down. This may be the last time you will be able to see Irissia again" My father told her as she stopped dead in her tracks to come sit back down with us at the table. After finishing our meal, I was whisked away to my room to get washed up and dressed. "Wait for me!" I heard Sharifa yell down the hall as she ran after me. When I was finally finished being cleaned up, I was taken to my dressing quarters where Anuktata and the other servants were straightening my tunic and jewelry for the final touches so that I would look my best. "May I have a moment alone please?" I asked the servants as I dismissed them. "Now that they are gone, what do you want to talk about?" Sharifa asked me as she sat down on my bed. "We will talk later Sharifa. I promise. I just wish to be alone right now" I told her as I walked out onto my balcony one last time to take in the view of the city. When she left the room, I decided to write one last letter before getting married. I sat down at my desk, took out my journal and a writing utensil and began to write.

"_My dearest love. It pains me to write this to you for I would love to be able to run away with you and leave everything behind so we could be together. However, something has come up and I can't reveal what it is. I really wish I could tell you everything but all I can tell you is that I have found out that my father arranged for me to marry someone I have never met just for his benefit._" I began to write. "_No man could ever take your place in my heart. I will never forget you and I will always deeply care for you, for you will always have my heart no matter what" _

I put down my writing utensil as I could feel the tears starting to form in my eyes. Just before I could wipe my tears away, Anuktata walked into the room with my newly polished headpiece. I wiped away my tears and closed my journal as fast as I could as Anuktata walked over to me and began to style my hair one last time before making the journey to the kingdom if the South. "The preparations have been made your highness. I got everything all set up for tomorrow night" Anuktata told me as she made the final touches on my hair before putting on my headpiece. "And before you ask your highness, the bottle is gone and I saw the man that took it. He was very kind and told me that someone asked him to retrieve the bottle for him" She placed my golden headpiece onto my head and adjusted it and my hair to make me look 'presentable'. "Thank you so very much Anuktata. What would I do without you" I stood up to see my guards standing in my doorway. "Ready your highness?" Hartatef asked me as he and Rahkorta waited for me to leave the room so that they may follow me to escort me to the chariot waiting outside. After saying goodbye to my brothers and their guards and servants, it was time for me to start my journey to my new life. We left the palace gate and I waved goodbye to the beloved people I came to know.

After we left the city, I was escorted onto a boat that set sail for Lower Egypt. "Are you feeling alright your highness?" Anuktata asked as I glanced over at Sharifa who seemed to be getting seasick. "Yes. I am fine. Thank you" I replied to her as I leaned over the railing thinking about my old life was and how my new life will be. After what seemed like hours of sailing on the Nile, we finally came upon our destination and docked. After lighting a few torches, we disembarked off of the ship and headed towards the palace in a covered wagon that was surrounded by guards. "I am so glad to finally be off that ship!" Sharifa exclaimed loudly as she stretched her arms out as I was stepping into the back of the wagon. "Shh Sharifa! Keep your voice down! We don't want to let anyone know of our arrival!" I turned to Sharifa and said to her in a loud whisper. After I got into the back, Sharifa soon followed and then finally Anuktata. After a while of sitting in silence in the back of the covered wagon, I saw the curtain door come open. "We have arrived your highness" I looked up to see Hartatef and Rahkorta holding out their hands for mine to help me out of the wagon. Anuktata put a hooded cape over me and tied it in the front. "There we are your highness" she said as she got out before me. "All clear!" I heard her loudly whisper to me. Sharifa pushed me out of the way and practically jumped out of the wagon. I adjusted the hood on my head and took Hartatef and Rahkorta's hands as they helped me out of the wagon. "All of your belongings have been set up in your new quarters my lady. I am going to go tell the other servants of your arrival your highness" Markata told me as he hurried off with the other guards. I was escorted inside the palace through the secret entrance and up to my new living quarters. "This place is much nicer than your old room!" Sharifa exclaimed as she jumped onto my new bed. "Don't get used to it, I am getting married after all" I reminded her as I untied the hooded cape. After settling into my new room, Anuktata came into my room. "Your highness, it is time for bed" She said as she gathered my night clothes. After being escorted into the bathing chambers and being washed, scrubbed down, dried and clothed, I finally had time to myself. As the servants were setting up their beds for the night, I decided to go onto my new balcony and see what scenery awaited me. When I walked out of the door that lead to the balcony, I looked over the railing to see a beautiful courtyard with a bench, a pond and a medium sized tree near another bench.

When I looked up, I saw the room that was across from mine. In the window, I saw a two young men sitting at what looked like to be a desk. One of them looked like he was a year or so older than I was and he was quite handsome from what I could see. And the other one looked much older. "That must be the prince that I am to marry" I thought to myself as I leaned against the railing. "Your highness, you need your rest" Anukita insisted as she escorted me to the bed. After pulling the covers over myself, I drifted off to sleep as Sharifa slept beside me.

That next morning I was woken up, cleaned and bathed as usual. "At least that part will never change" I thought to myself as Anukita was putting on my headpiece. "Your highness, Sharifa and your parents are waiting for you downstairs in the dining hall" She said as she finished putting on my headpiece. "Thank you Anukita" I said to her before being escorted to the dining hall. "Good morning daughter!" My mother said happily as she stood up to hug me. "Morning Sharifa. Mother. Father" I said as I greeted them before sitting down to eat. After being served breakfast, we all just sat there and ate in silence. "The other royal family have gone off to attend to their royal duties. You will get a chance to meet them tomorrow" My father said as he broke the silence. "So today, you will get to roam the city and palace as much as you would like" My mother added as she tried to lighten the mood. When we finally finished our meal, we went to the temple to pray. After morning prayers were finished, my parents and I headed off to the palace while Sharifa headed into town to do some shopping. "What is it that you wish to do your highness?" Sharifa asked me as she bowed after entering the room. "I wish to change into something simple" I told her after my parents had left the room to go do whatever it is that they were going to do. Sharifa and I were then escorted back to my room where I picked out what I wished to wear. I chose a simple white dress with a small gold waistband. "Are you sure you wish to wear something as simple as this?" Anuktata asked me as she took the dress from my hand. "Yes" I replied confidently. Anuktata then undressed me and after getting my headpiece off, she put the outfit that I wanted to wear on me. "Which headpiece do you wish to wear your highness?" She asked me as she picked up the many boxes which contained all of my headpieces. "None. This is perfect just the way it is!" I told her as I straightened the waistband. As Anuktata was putting all of the boxes away, the doors came open and Rahkorta and Hartatef walked in. "Where do you wish to go today your highness?" Rahkorta asked as he and Hartatef stood by the doors. "I wish to go into town" I told them as I started to walk out of the doors. "Yes your highness" Rahkorta and Hartatef said as they followed me out of the doors and then closed them. "Oh and please do keep your distance. I do not wish to draw any attention to myself" I told Rahkorta and Hartatef. After walking into town, Rahkorta and Hartatef obeyed my orders and kept their distance from me.

My time in town was very pleasant. No one in town knew who I really was and viewed me as one of them. After playing with the children and talking with the villagers about the state of the kingdom and after hearing their opinions, I got some ideas about how I can improve the kingdom. While exploring the town, a parade was passing through the town and back to the palace. I found a spot in front of the crowd where I was able to watch. First came the soldiers that were mounted on horseback. Second came musicians that were playing a beautiful yet joyful melody. Then, came the flag bearers that were followed by dancers and maidens tossing flower petals as the dancers danced along. As the dancers and maidens passed, the people were jumping and cheering excitedly. After they had passed, the royal family appeared. All I could see was the top of the pharaoh's crown and his queen's headpiece. As they were passing, everyone was pushing each other around to get a better look. "I hope the young prince makes an appearance!" I heard one of the young ladies yell to one another. "Young prince? I wonder how many sons they have and which one I am marrying" I thought to myself. As I was shrugging off the thought, a little boy got pushed from behind me and onto the pathway. "Get out of my way!" I heard a man yell to the little boy who was so frightened that he froze in place. When I noticed the man hurriedly walking towards the young boy while raising his hand in the air, I escaped from the crowd, wrapped my arms around him while I held him close to my body for protection. "How dare you get in my way!" The man yelled again but this time at me. I looked over at the crowd to see the young boy's mother and when I let him go, he ran to his mother and they embraced. "Didn't you hear me? You are in my way. Now move!" He yelled again as he put his foot on my back and pushed me down to the ground. I let out a sharp sigh as I stood up. "One of these days, your actions will come back to make you suffer" I warned him as I dusted off my disguise. "Was that a threat?" He said as he put a hand on my shoulder. "That is enough!" I heard the pharaoh yell to the man. "Why bother wasting my highly valuable time with a peasant like you?" I heard him saw as I felt him let go of my shoulder and walk away. As I was leaving with my head down, I heard countless mentions of a young prince. "Where is the young prince?" I heard most of the young women ask as I was walking away. "I don't think he is with them!" Some would say. "What a pity! He is cute" Another had said. I had reached the back of the crowd and before I could walk to another part of town, I felt a gentle tug on my skirt. When I looked up, I saw the little boy and his mother. "Excuse me miss. I just want to say thank you for saving my son. Take this. It's not much but it is all that we have" The woman said to me as she handed me a small bag. I opened it to reveal gold coins. I looked back at her as I closed the bag and smiled. "This is not necessary. I only did what I felt was right" I told her as I handed her back the small bag. "There must be something I can give you to show you my thanks" She said as she quickly scanned the village. "You could give me your word" I said as her son hugged my leg. "My word?" she asked me as I smiled. "Yes. Promise me that no matter what happens, stay calm and breathe. If you see another in need, help them. And when you are in need of assistance, ask for it and they shall be there for you as you were there for them" I explained to her as I held out my hand. "My son and I give you our word" She said as she took my hand and shook it. I smiled at her and crouched down to her son and hugged him back. "You behave yourself and be good" I told the boy as I hugged him. He pulled away, smiled and nodded. "Good" I replied to him as I stood up.

When the crowd had cleared, I decided to talk to some more villagers and see what they had to say. After I had talked to everyone, I walked to an empty part of town and I signaled Rahkorta and Hartatef that I was ready to head back to the palace. "Rahkorta, Hartatef, I have finished my business here and I am ready to go back to the palace now" I told after I pulled them aside. They then proceed to escort me back to the palace.

After walking back to the palace, I was informed by Anuktata that it was time for me to get washed up and changed for nightly prayers and supper. A while later after being finished with prayers and supper, it was time for me to meet the mystery man that I had been sending letters to back and forth for the past ten years. "Are you ready your highness?" she asked me as she held up a change of clothes for me with the bottle wrapped in an old cloth on top. She helped me to change into the disguise that she had packed for me and after getting changed, I opened the bottle. "He has agreed to meet me tonight!" I told her excitedly. "Just remember to look out for the signal" She reminded me as she hid the bottle away in a safe place and put my other clothes away. Suddenly, a man came into my room. "Your highness" Anuktata smiled as he bowed. "Your highness, I would like you to meet Ubaid. This is the man I told you about earlier" she said as she put the hooded cape on me and adjusted it for me. "Please come with me" Ubaid said as he and Anuktata eagerly waited for me to walk out with them. Ubaid took us through the secret passageways in the palace and to a secret path that lead us to the Nile river. "Thank you so much Ubaid! If you ever need anything just let me know." I told him as he and Anuktata smiled at each other. "Have fun and be safe!" Anuktata said to me. "And don't worry your highness, no one will ever notice that you are gone. We will meet you back at the palace" Ubaid said as he and Anuktata started to head back for the palace. Remembering what they told me, I headed towards the river.

"I really hope he shows up tonight." I said to myself as I paced back and forth. "Calm down. I'm sure he will." I replied to myself as I sat down on the ground near the riverbank. "Hello there" I heard a voice say to me as he approached me."I must say, it is nice to finally see you after all of the years of sending letters back and forth to each other every day through the bottle." I heard the voice add. I quickly stood up and turned around to see another hooded figure. I smiled and then quickly put my head down hoping he didn't see my face. "You mean this bottle?" I asked him as I held out the bottle with my head down. "That exact one." He replied as we both looked up at each other and smiled when our eyes met. I could finally see his face after all of these years. I gently put the bottle down on the ground. "I must say, your face is even more beautiful in the moonlight." He said as we sat down together and I adjusted the hairs that were falling out of place. "Thank you." I replied to him as I tried hard not to blush. "And I must say that even in the dark, your eyes still light up the night!" I told him as I tried to break away from his gaze. He moved closer to me and took my hands in his. He kissed my hand, ran his hands up my arms and pulled me in for a hug. I couldn't help but freeze dead in my tracks. He smelled so good and felt so warm as he embraced me. And the touch of his hands in mine felt like magic! I couldn't help but put my arms around him as I hugged him back. I pulled away from his embrace and straightened out my outfit after a while in his warm and tender embrace. We ended up talking for a short while, reminiscing about our past letters and making eachother laugh. "Listen. There is something that I have to tell you…" I said as I cleared my throat as I stood up and stepped back. I cleared my throat one more time to make sure he was paying attention. "What is it?" He asked me in a sweet yet concerning tone. "I…" I said before taking a deep breath. "I love you" He blurted out before I could even finish my sentence. "You what?" I replied in shock. "I love you." He said again proudly as he stood up and took my hands in his. "Ever since that day when we met ten years ago, I knew that there was something special about you and that I never wanted to lose you. I just never knew the right words to say to describe my feelings for you until tonight" He told me as I stood there in shock as my hands were still in his. "I had this made for you!", He said to me as he gently let go of one of my hands took my other hand and gently slipped an intricate golden bracelet onto my wrist. "I hope you like it." He said as he looked up at me with joy in his eyes. "I. I love it!" I exclaimed to him as we embraced each other with excitement. "I am so glad that you do!" He said with a smile. "Promise me you will always remember me and that you will never take it off." He told me as he looked into my eyes and held out his pinky finger. "I promise." I said as I held out my pinky finger. He pulled me in for another embrace. After we broke away from each other's embrace, we stood there holding hands and getting lost in each other's eyes. After snapping back into reality, I cleared my throat as I broke away from his gaze. "Listen, there is something that I have to tell you." I said as I let go of his hands as I took a step back as I felt tears starting to form in my eyes. "I…I..." Suddenly, before I could finish my sentence, I saw a light coming from my new room that was flickering on and off. "I have to go!" I told him abruptly as I began to rush off. "Thank you so much for tonight!" I said before giving him a kiss on the cheek. I began to run back towards the palace. "I hope I will get to see you again soon!" I heard him yell to me as I was running away from him.

I ran and ran as fast as my feet would allow me back towards the palace and in through the secret entrance that lead into the secret passageways that lead up towards my room. When I finally reached the doors to my room, Rahkorta and Hartatef opened the doors for me. Inside my room, I saw Anuktata waiting for me. She quickly helped me get out of the torn up outfit that I was wearing and into my nightly attire for bed. "Did you have a nice time your highness?" She asked me as she noticed the bracelet on my wrist. "I had a wonderful time!' I replied to her as I happily rolled in the bed trying to contain my excitement. "I am so glad that you did your highness" She said as she set her bed up beside mine on the floor. "I am glad that you had a wonderful time." She added as she put her pillow on the blanket on the floor and got under her covers. "Goodnight your highness" She said as she put the covers over her chest. "Goodnight Anuktata" I said as I began to settle into the bed for the night. I couldn't help but wonder who the mystery man was and if I will ever get to see him ever again. "If only I could just marry him and leave the royal life behind me!" I thought to myself. After shrugging off the thought, I slowly started to fall asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: A Proper Introduction

The next morning, Anuktata woke me up as she always does and opened the curtains. "Good morning your highness" She said as she helped me get undressed and ready for the bath. "Good morning Anuktata" I replied feeling more awake than usual. "You sure are feeling cheerful this morning" She noted as she undressed me and then helped the other servants to clean me up and dress me for the day. "Your highness, your family will be waiting for you down the hall after morning prayers" she told me as she put my headpiece on. After I was dressed and ready for the day, Anuktata put my sandals on my feet and secured them in place. Just then as Anuktata had finished securing my sandal, Rahkorta and Hartatef opened the doors. "Ready your highness?" Anuktata asked me as she adjusted my necklace. "Ready as I will ever be I suppose" I said while crossing my hand over my wrist to hide the bracelet that I had received last night. When I had finished with morning prayers, I arrived back at the palace where I changed into an extravagant outfit. When the finishing touches were made, Rahkorta and Hartatef opened the doors and I was then escorted down the hall and into a room where I saw my mother, her servant Tahmina, and her guards Tosorthros and Manevis waiting for me. My father walked in through another door with his servant Rustam and his guards, Botoun and Pasamentius. My mother and father were certainly dressed and ready to make an impression on the Pharoah, his wife and the prince I was supposedly set to marry. "Come Neithhotep let us go" My father said as he held out his arm for my mother. She took his arm. "Come daughter" My mother said to me in a quiet yet sweet voice. They started to walk down the hall while being escorted by their guards and servants. I followed shortly behind while being escorted by my guards and servant. After walking through many beautifully decorated halls, my father halted at a balcony overlooking the ballroom. I peered over my father's shoulder and over the balcony to see the pharaoh, his queen and two men which looked like his sons. One of which, looked very familiar. Then, I saw my parent's guards and servants walk down the hall and lined up on each side of the large carpet. "Greetings" I heard my father say. " I am King Narmer. Ruler of the North. And this is my wife, Queen Neithhotep" My father said as I saw them shake hands with the other pharoah as my mother bowed her head to the other queen. "Welcome to my kingdom." The other pharaoh said. "I am Merenkahre. The Third King of the Third King" He said as he shook my father's hand. "And I am Shepseheret, the glittering jewel of the Nile" she said as she bowed her head to my mother. "These are our sons. Our eldest, Kahmunrah and this is our youngest, Ahkmenrah" King Merenkahre said as he motioned to each of his sons as my father shook their hands. "King Merenkahre and Queen Shepseheret. We would like to present you to our youngest child and only daughter, Irissia, Princess of the North" Just as my father announced my name, my guards starting moving forwards and Anuktata motioned for me to start walking behind them. I slowly walked down the stairs as I tried to seem as elegant as possible and to hopefully make a good first impression in front of everyone, while I tried not to slip and fall. As I reached the bottom of the stairs, I bowed my head as I curtsied to the King, Queen and their sons. "It is such a high honor to be able to meet you" I said in a clear yet elegant tone of voice. I stood up and each prince took my hand and kissed it. "The pleasure is all mine" the youngest prince said to me as he looked into my eyes before kissing my hand. After both princes kissed my hands, we were escorted to this extravagant dining hall for lunch. Naturally, each king sat at each end of the table and his queen sat besides him. The eldest son sat besides their father while the youngest sat next to me. Throughout the meal, I felt Ahkmenrah's hand reaching for mine and him twirling my finger around his fingers under the table.

After being served a glorious lunch, we went our separate ways to get washed up. When we were finished getting cleaned up my mother and father went to go meet King Merenkahre and Queen Shepseheret in another room while I got to go spend time with the princes alone. I walked into the room that I was supposed to be in and there was the youngest prince sitting alone in the room. "Hello" I said as I entered the room and sat down on the couch across from him. "Hello" He replied to me as he took off his headpiece, revealing his somewhat messy black hair. He looked up at me and smiled. "It's you!" I exclaimed as he smiled more. "I was hoping I would get to see you again" He said as he took ahold of my hand and kissed it again. I stood there in complete shock. "I can't believe it!" I said in shock as he smiled more and kissed my cheek. We sat down on the couch together and he reached for my hand. "So, you are the princess from the North?" He asked me as he ran his other fingers through my hair. "Indeed I am" I replied while feeling and playing with his soft black hair. We both smiled realizing the fact that we both concealed our true identities from each other for the same reason. "I would like to formally introduce myself. I am Prince Ahkmenrah" He said as he put his hand out for mine. "I am Princess Irissia" I said as I playfully mocked his tone. "But please, call me Iris" I said as I reached my hand out for his to shake his hand. Suddenly, he grabbed my hand and pulled me in for a kiss. Just as our lips were about to touch, the door flew open. "Princess Irissia, I have arrived!" A blood stained Kahmunrah said in a very proud voice as he stormed in through the doors. Ahkmenrah and I pulled away quickly so he wouldn't notice. "What happened to you?" I asked him. "What this?" He said as he motioned to his blood stained arm. "You should have seen me before mother made me get cleaned up." He said flexing his what he would call muscles. Ahkmenrah stood up and sat down on the other couch hoping to get away from his brother as he started to walk to where I was sitting. "Do you want to see?" He asked me with a wink as he sat down on the other side of me thinking that it would impress me. He then put his arm around my shoulder and I quickly removed it and placed it onto his lap. "No thank you" I replied as I tried to stand up to go sit on the other couch next to Ahkmenrah to get away from him. "What? Not impressed princess?" Kahmunrah asked as he stood up and leaned over me with his arm on the couch cushion near the side of my head. "Here's an idea, let us get out of here and go do something else" I said as I got away from Kahmunrah. "What a lovely idea" Ahkmenrah said as he stood up. "We could..." he started to say. "Kiss up" Kahmunrah said to rudely interrupt his brother. "How about we go for a walk around the palace?" I suggested. "That sounds like a lovely idea" Ahkmenrah said as he put his headpiece back on. "Shall we?" He turned to me as he held out his arm for me. "We shall" I said back to him with a smile as I put my hand on his arm. He and I started to walk out of the room with Kahmunrah following behind us. Once he caught up to us, he took my other arm and put it on his. I tried to pull my hand away but he wouldn't let me. Before we could walk down the stairs, I saw Markata and Shoshan walking up the stairs towards us. I was then able to break free from Kahmunrah. I gently pulled my hand away from Ahkmenrah's and walked ahead of them down some of the stairs. "Ahh. Just the princes and princess that we were looking for" Shoshan said as Markata followed behind him. "What are you three up to?" Markata asked us. "Just out for a walk around the palace" Ahkmenrah explained to them. "You will have plenty of time for that later my prince" Shoshan said. "Please come with us. Your parent's have come to a decision and they requested your presence immediately " Markata told us. We then followed them down the rest of the stairs as our guards followed behind us. When we reached the throne room, there were both pharaohs and their queens standing side by side. "Daughter" My father said as he looked at me. "My sons" King Merenkahre said as he looked at his sons. "We have come to a decision on who will marry the princess." King Merenkahre said as he stepped forward to address his sons. "The prince that gets to marry the princess is..."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Decision

"Ahkmenrah " King Merenkahre announced proudly. Ahkmenrah and I looked at each other with wide smiles on our faces. He put his hands on my waist and spun me around in excitement. "Why does _he_ get to marry her?! It should be me that marries the princess! I am the eldest and next in line for the throne! You always give him the best of _everything! _" Kahmunrah growled in anger. "Enough Kahmunrah!" Merenkahre replied angrily to him as he slammed the bottom of his staff against the ground hoping Kahmunrah would not speak again. "Ahkmenrah is to marry the princess because you are _clearly _not ready to become pharaoh!" Merenkahre said as he scolded Kahmunrah for his behavior. Kahmunrah then crossed his arms and let out another angry growl. "He _ALWAYS _gets the best of everything! It's always Ahkmenrah this and Ahkmenrah that! Ahkmenrah the favorite son!" he yelled angrily as he stormed out of the room and down the hall. "Oh Ahkmenrah our son, we are so happy to see you be married to such a lovely woman like her!" his mother said lovingly as she stroked his cheek. "I feel truly blessed to be able to marry such a kind and lovely woman as herself" Ahkmenrah said as he took my hand and we smiled at each other. "Daughter, you are happy about this?" My father asked me with a puzzled look on his face. "Why just yesterday you were reluctant to arrive here and absolutely dreading even the idea of an arranged marriage. And now look at you!" My mother beamed delightly. "Well, I have had a change of heart!" I replied to my mother as I could not stop grinning from ear to ear as Ahkmenrah held my hand and squeezed it lightly.

As I was walking down the hall hand in hand with Ahkmenrah, we passed what will soon be my old room. "We'll fix this problem and make _MY.. _er I mean_ OUR dreams come true!_" I heard a voice say from my old room. I paused for a moment and let go of Ahkmenrah's hand as he continued to walk without me. I hid behind the nearby marble column that was just outside of the room and leaned in ever so slightly just so that I could hear what was being said. I heard the sound of a familiar laugh. "It can be so hard to be so perfect and so beautiful!" the voice said in a mocking tone. "That crown suits you" I heard another voice say. "Sharifa? And Kahmunrah?" I asked myself. "No. It couldn't be" I said to myself quietly as I leaned in a little further. Hoping to get a glimpse of who was in my room, I leaned in a little further but all I could see was the bedpost and another column. "Are you coming my love?" I heard my beloved Ahkmenrah call to me as I saw him walking towards me. I started to walk away from the door hoping that whoever was in my room would not see me. "Yes. Of course!" I replied to him. I took his hand that was reached out for mine. "Good." He said with a smile. "We have much to discuss in regards to our wedding and our future kingdom." He said as he kissed my hand. We both smiled at each other and we made our way towards the meeting hall where both of our parents were waiting for us. As we were walking down the next hall, we heard a voice call to Ahkmenrah. Suddenly, a figure appeared from around the corner, calling Ahkmenrah many nicknames. From the sound of its voice, I could presume that it was a male. My dearest Ahkmenrah slightly cringed as the figure came closer to us. "Who is that darling?" I asked him. "No one my love. Let us continue." He said abruptly. "Come now my darling. We must get going, there is much to discuss." he urged me as he tugged my hand gently and he lead me elsewhere. "Ahkie bear! Why are you running?!" we heard the unknown male calling after us. Eventually, the male caught up to us and he put a hand on Ahkmenrah's shoulder. "Woah Ahkie! Who is this?" he asked curiously as he put his arm around Ahkmenrah's shoulders. Ahkmenrah sighed heavily as he removed the male's arm from his shoulders. "Craig" He said with a groan. "This is Princess Irissia of the North" He said as he motioned to me with his free hand. "Charmed" I said as I took my hand out of Ahkmenrah's and held it out to him. "She is my betrothed" He added sharply as he grabbed my hand and put it in his.

"Iris, this is my friend, Craig" Ahkmenrah explained. "I'm not just his friend, I'm his best friend!" Craig said boastfully as he pulled Ahkmenrah away from me and under his arm in a headlock and his crown was knocked off his head. "Let me go Craig!" Ahkmenrah yelled irritatedly as he got out of Craig's headlock. He then picked up his crown from the where it was on the floor and put it back onto his head with a huff. "Woah. Take it easy Ahkie. I was just messing around with ya. No need to get angry" Craig said with his hands up defensively as he slowly backed up and away from a clearly furious Ahkmenrah. "I know when I am not wanted. I can take a hint. I'll see you around Ahkmenrah" Craig said. He then gave us a small wave before he turned around and left. "Ahkmenrah my darling, please calm yourself. I am sure that Craig didn't mean any harm" I said, trying to calm him down as I touched his arm. "My apologies my dearest heart. I am just tired of his childish behavior" Ahkmenrah explained apologetically. "Don't say that to me. Say it to him" I said as I pointed to Craig as he was walking away. Ahkmenrah smiled at me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. "Craig! Wait!" Ahkmenrah yelled down the hall at him. "Craig!" He yelled again. Craig turned around and walked towards Ahkmenrah. "Craig listen. I'm sorry for yelling at you" Ahkmenrah said to him. Before he could speak another word, Craig wrapped his arms around him and pulled him in for a big hug. "How could I ever stay mad at you Ahkie pooh?! But, if you wanna make it up to me, then you could let me wear that fancy hat of yours!" Craig said as Ahkmenrah hugged him back. I smiled happily at the two and I let out a small laugh as Craig was playing with Ahkmenrah's shoulder cape and trying to get his crown off of his head. "Here is an idea! How about a tour of the palace after Ahkmenrah and I are finished in our meeting?" I said as Craig let go of Ahkmenrah. "What a great idea!" Craig said as he took my hand and pulled me towards the courtyard. "Craig! Craig!" Ahkmenrah yelled as he chased after us. After a while of Craig pulling me and Ahkmenrah yelling at him to stop and slow down while chasing after us, Ahkmenrah finally caught up to us. "She said _after _our meeting Craig" Ahkmenrah said as he put his hand on my shoulder while trying to catch his breath. After he caught his breath and was able to breathe normally again. After bidding Craig farewell, we made our way to the meeting with our parents.

Ahkmenrah and I walked into the meeting room where both of our parents were. "Sorry for the delay." I said as Ahkmenrah and I entered the room. We took our seats and just before anyone could speak, Craig entered the room. "Ok. Now that I am here, lets get this party started!" Craig said as he made his way to sit in between Ahkmenrah and his father. Ahkmenrah let out a groan as he facepalmed when Craig sat down "Hi Ahkie!" Craig cooed as he pet Ahkmenrah's arm. "Craig what are you doing here?" Merenkahre said to Craig as he sat down. "Well, I am here for the meeting!" Craig said oblivious to the fact that our parents seemed to be extremely annoyed with him. "This is a meeting to discuss Ahkmenrah and Irissia's wedding, and not only their future, but also the future of our kingdoms as well. I suggest you leave immediately so that we may start our discussions of diplomatic importance." My father sternly said to him. "Nah! I'm good. Besides, weather Ahkie likes it or not, I'll always be here by his side, no matter what" Craig said as he refused to move from his seat. My father then motioned for the royal guards to escort him away and out of the room. With a bit of force, the guards were able to escort Craig out of the room. As soon as the large double doors were slammed shut, Craig began to bang loudly on the doors. " Ahkie! Let me in!" he whined over and over again as he kept getting louder and louder. Everyone looked at Ahkmenrah and he sighed heavily as he stood up from his seat beside me. "I'll handle this" he said as he pushed in his chair. He then walked over to the doors and opened one of them before he stepped out into the hall. Once the door closed, all that could heard was the sound of Craig whining and begging for Ahkmenrah to let him come in and join him in the meeting.

A few moments later, Ahkmenrah walked back in and sat back in his seat. "Now, where were we?" He said as he scooted his seat in towards the table. "We were just about to discuss the plans for the wedding" his mother explained. "Ah. Good" Ahkmenrah mused.

After a while of talking and mostly arguing amongst ourselves, we finally reached a decision on the details of the wedding ceremony and the crowning ceremony. "Now then, tonight will be your first night sleeping together in the same room. I had Anuktata, Ubaid, Ximena and Tomrisprepare a room just for the two of you. Your father and I will be departing soon to set sail for our kingdom." My mother informed us. " All of your belongings have already been moved and organized accordingly" Shepseheret said to us as she looked over at us smiling. After the meeting was over, our parents showed us to our new room that was fully set up and decorated just for us. The room was beautifully decorated with paintings, statues and beautiful plants. There was a large bed with a sheer curtain that went around it. At the foot of the bed, there was a golden ottoman with 2 chaise lounge couches right next to each other facing different directions. There were enormous arched glass windows with beautiful curtains and a huge arched door leading out to a balcony with a breathtaking view of the city. In one corner of the room there were two couches and chairs set up under a window. And in another corner of the room was a pile of all sizes of pillows on top of a large blanket in an opened gold trimmed wooden closet. There was also a door that was connected to a large elegant bathroom.

Later that evening, Ahkmenrah, his parent's, and I, as well as the royal guards escorted my parents to the docks to board the ship that was waiting to take them back home. Once we got there, we were greeted by my older brothers who were waiting on the dock for us. "Horusaha? Napophsis? Anhuris?" I said in shock as I ran over to hug them. "I cant believe our little sister is getting married." Horusaha said to me as he hugged me. "We are really gonna miss you little sister." Napophsis said as he hugged me tighter. "Stay safe okay?" Anhuris whispered into my ear as he hugged me even tighter. "And you." He said as he looked at Ahkmenrah. "You take good care of her you hear?" he said in a what he believed to be threatening tone. "If any harm comes to her, we will have your head by sunrise." Napophsis warned him as he slid his finger across his throat and then pointed at him. "Worry not, my dear brothers. I will be perfectly fine" I said as I hugged them for the last time. ""She correct." I heard Ahkmenrah say as he reached his hand out for my brother's hands. "Do not forget that she may be fragile and beautiful, she is still a strong, independent woman that is capable of protecting herself and doing anything that she puts her mind to." He said with a smile. My brothers shook his hand one by one and then proceed to board the ship. "Take good care of her. She _IS _my youngest child and only daughter." My father said as he gave me a big fatherly hug. "I love you my dearest daughter." He whispered into my ear, hugging me tighter. I stood in shock for a moment before hugging him back. I could already feel tears starting to form in my eyes. "We will see you in a few months. We'll try to arrive a day or so before the ceremony is set to begin." My mother said as she hugged me goodbye. She and my father then boarded the ship with their servants, Markata, and then their guards following closely behind.

After we watched my family set sail on a course back home, we headed back to the palace. While Ahkmenrah went to go deal with Craig, I decided to take a walk around the garden. I had been walking in the garden for a while in silence when I heard footsteps of another person. "You know, this will be your garden someday" I heard the voice say to me. When I turned around, I saw Queen Shepseheret walking towards me. When she finally caught up with me, we both smiled at each other and begun walking together. "Yes I know. The pharaoh and his queen have their own private garden, away from the others." I said as I nodded. "This place is beautiful. I love all of the different types of flowers and all of the different variations of colors!" I mused as we continued to walk through the garden. "We must get going. We don't want to be late for the nightly ceremony!" Queen Shepseheret said as we got to the other end of the garden.

When the sunset/moonrise ceremony was over, Ahkmenrah and I headed back to the palace and we were finally able to see our room and have some much needed alone time. After getting cleaned up and dressed for bed, Ahkmenrah and I settled into our shared bed for the first time. "Good night my love" he said as he and I settled under the covers. "Good night my darling" I replied with a yawn . We both kept our gazes on each other and before we knew it, we were slowly leaning our heads into a kiss as our eyes slowly began to close. Suddenly, we heard the sound of the doors bursting open. "So _THIS _is where you guys are staying now! Nice room!" Craig said as he came rushing through the large double doors of our shared room. "Go away Craig!" Ahkmenrah mumbled loudly as he got out from under the covers as he started to drift off to sleep. "But Ahkie! You have so much cool stuff!" Craig said loudly as he began to wander aimlessly around our room while looking through all of our drawers, cabinets, closets, and boxes. Ahkmenrah then got back under the covers and we slowly leaned in once more and as our lips were about to touch, I felt my lips touch something that did not feel like my beloved Ahkmenrah's lips. I quickly opened my eyes to reveal that I was kissing Craig's cheek while my beloved was kissing the other cheek. "Awh~! You guys are so sweet! I didn't know you liked me _THAT _much!" Craig cooed as he started to nudge himself between Ahkmenrah and I under our covers. "Well, it's late and I better get some sleep. You know I need my beauty sleep. Afterall, a face like this doesn't happen without it you know!" he said. "Night" he said as he nudged himself more under the covers. "Get out Craig!" Ahkmenrah said angrily as he got out from under the covers and pointed towards the door. "But Ahkie!" Craig whined. "Now Craig!" Ahkmenrah said again in a harsher tone. Craig then let out a sigh as he got out from under the covers and started to walk towards the door. "Night Ahkie! Night Iris" Craig said as he opened the doors and then walked out. "Finally! Alone together at last!" He said with a sigh of relief as he got back under the covers. "Goodnight my love" Ahkmenrah said as he kissed my lips. "Goodnight my darling" I replied as I kissed him back. We then shared a long goodnight kiss before I fell asleep in his arms while he held me close to his body.

The next morning, I had my head on Ahkmenrah's chest while he was laying on his back. I heard him groan and I lifted my head. "Ahkie~ Try this" Craig whispered as he tried to shove a piece of a fried dough ball into Ahkmenrah's slightly open mouth. "Craig, I'm trying to sleep" Ahkmenrah mumbled. "But Ahkie~ It's really good" Craig continued. "No Craig" Ahkmenrah said as he turned onto his side to face me. We shared a soft kiss before we went back to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: The Following Day

When I awoke the next morning, I was greeted by the face of Ahkmenrah, who was still sleeping peacefully beside me. I closed my eyes and a few moments later I felt something nudging itself in between Ahkmenrah and I. When I opened my eyes, I saw Craig with one hand holding Ahkmenrah's hand in one hand and his other hand was holding mine. "Good morning my love" I heard Ahkmenrah mumble in a still asleep voice. "Good morning my dear" Craig replied back to Ahkmenrah in a playful yet high pitched voice as Ahkmenrah suddenly opened up his eyes. He then looked down at his hand to see that it was intertwined with Craig's hand. He then looked up at Craig and scowled. "Craig!" Ahkmenrah yelled at him as Craig tossed my beloved from our bed. "Craig!" Ahkmenrah yelled again as he stood up revealing his shirtless body. "What in the name of the gods are _YOU _doing in my..." I coughed to remind him that I was here too. "I mean _OUR _room?!" Ahkmenrah yelled at him again. "I got oh so very lonely and the sky's awake, so I'm awake, so now _you_ have to be awake since _I'm_ awake!" Craig said as he sat up in the bed and pushed me off of the bed. Just before I fell off the bed, I quickly grabbed the blanket to cover myself. "Oww" I groaned in mild pain as I hit the floor. "Are you alright my love?" Ahkmenrah asked me as he rushed over to my side to help me up off of the floor. "I am okay" I said as he helped me to stand up while keeping me covered up with the blanket. Ahkmenrah then looked at Craig with a furious look on his face. "For the last time Craig. Get. Out." He yelled through gritted teeth as he held me protectively in his arms. "Fine then." He said as he got up from our bed. "_SOMEONE_ clearly needs to get some more beauty sleep next time" Craig said as he exited the room and a bunch of servants came rushing in. "Good morning your highness. You are up early this morning. Did you sleep well last night?" Anuktata and Ubaid said as they greeted us. "Yes I did thank you" I replied to her as she took my hand to take me to get undressed, cleaned up and ready for the day. "We will meet you in the dining hall!" I yelled out to Ahkmenrah as Ubaid was escorting him to his bath chambers to get him ready for the day.

After Anuktata and the other servants got me cleaned up and ready for the day, they began to put a long, dress-like tunic on me and proceeded to decorate it with golden accessories. "Your highness, are you ever planning on taking this thing off?" Anuktata asked me as she was grooming my hands and motioning to the bracelet that Ahkmenrah had given to me that fateful night. "No. Never" I replied as she finished drying my hand off. "Say Anuktata, have you seen Sharifa anywhere by chance?" I asked her as she cleaned my other hand. "No your highness. Not since the other night when I saw her with the other prince and Atsum. Try not to worry your highness, I am sure she is just fine" She replied as she cleaned my fingernails and then dried them off. "Come now" She said as she slipped a new pair of gold sandals onto my feet and strapped them in place. "Come now your highness. Everyone is waiting for you" She said as she combed my hair back and proceeded to put a new beautiful golden headpiece onto my head. After she made the final adjustments, she and my guards escorted me out of my room and as we walked down the many halls and a large flight of stairs, I couldn't stop thinking about how the the mystery man that I used to fantasize about running away with, was the man that will soon be my husband. "Your highness is everything alright?" Anuktata asked me when we finally reached the dining hall. "Yes, everything is fine. Just lost in thought" I replied to her assuringly. The guards then opened the large double doors to the dining hall where Ahkmenrah, his parents and Craig were waiting for me. "Good morning everyone!" I said as I entered the room and bowed my head before Ahkmenrah and his parents. "Good morning Irissia" Shepseheret replied to me as she got out of her seat and hugged me. "You look beautiful!" She added as we pulled away from the hug. "Thank you! You look quite exquisite this morning!" I said as she went to go sit beside her husband. "Now that everyone is here, we may all eat in good company!" Merenkahre said proudly as he adjusted his seat position at the head of the table. I took my place beside Ahkmenrah and Craig on the other hand, ended up sitting across from Ahkmenrah and judging by the unamused and annoyed look on my beloved's face, he was trying to play footsie with him under the table.

After an interesting breakfast, the four of us and Craig got washed up to leave the palace to go to the temple for the sunrise ceremony and morning prayers. During the ceremony, Craig kept nudging my beloved and I trying to ask us questions and who knows what else he wanted. After we were finished with morning prayers, we left the temple to go an outing into the city to meet and greet the citizens that will soon be under Ahkmenrah and I's rule. After a while of meeting the citizens and hearing what they had to say, it was time to head back to the palace for a well deserved lunch break and more royal duties and planning. After lunch, we attend to our evening duties and even more meetings with the royal advisor until it was time for the sunset/moonrise ceremony. During the ceremony, the high priest asked for the gods to bless the marriage and union of Ahkmenrah to me. Before we left, I felt a hand grab gently my arm just as I was about to walk out. I turned around to see the high priest holding my arm. "Your highness, Your marriage has been blessed by the gods. However, there is a great danger that will stand before you" He warned me as he looked me in the eyes looking very worried. "Be very careful who you trust for evil lurks in the shadows" He then let go of my arm and I was able be on my way.

After the ceremony, I could not stop thinking about what the priest had said to me. Later that evening after eating dinner and getting cleaned up and dressed down for the night, Ahkmenrah and I decided to spend the remainder of the night in our room alone together. Ahkmenrah and I were in our bed relaxing. He had his head was on my lap and I was running my fingers through his hair. Watching his chest rise and fall as he fell asleep in my lap I couldn't help but wonder if I should tell him what the high priest had said to me. I gazed down at his face and my mind swired with thoughts. "I don't want him to worry" I thought to myself. I paused for a moment. "Everything alright darling?" I heard Ahkmenrah say as he lifted up his head and sat up. "What? Oh yes. Everything is fine my love. I was just thinking" I replied as I looked out the window at the dark sky that was filled with stars. Ahkmenrah settled in under the covers and then put his head onto his pillow laying on his back. "Come my love" He said as he reached out one of his arms for me and pat his chest with his other hand. I looked at him and couldn't help but smile. I put my hand on his cheek and then settled under the covers with him. "Goodnight my darling" I said to him as we kissed before I put my head onto his chest. "Goodnight my love" Ahkmenrah said as he kissed the top of my head before we drifted off to sleep together.

Throughout the night, I kept having this nightmare that seemed far to real. Everything felt like reality. In the nightmare, it is pitch black and it is only Ahkmenrah and I. He seems so close but yet when I reach out for him, he seems so far away. I kept shouting his name but it seemed like he couldn't hear me. Then,a pair of arms came out of the shadows, grabbed me to drag me away and all the way into Duat . The next moment, I could see Ahkmenrah's dead body wrapped up in bandages in a display case while his head remained unwrapped. As I tried to touch his unwrapped face, my hand went through his face and the casket. I was falling deeper and deeper into the dark abyss. I looked up and I all I could see people wrapping his head and placing the final touches on him before sealing up his sarcophagus. I closed my eyes again and All I could hear was the sound of roaring flame engulfing the world I saw shrinking before my eyes.

Suddenly, I jerked myself awake. I was breathing heavily in a cold sweat as I could feel heavy tears running down the side of my face. I glanced over at a still asleep Ahkmenrah as I tried to get my breathing under control and back to normal. I looked out the window and saw birds flying by. I decided to get up and get some fresh air. After I walked out onto the balcony, I saw the city streets empty and smoke coming from the people's chimneys. As I was staring into the quiet view of night, I felt arms wrap around me and pulled me into a warm embrace. "Are you sure that everything alright my love? Ever since we got back from the temple, you seem to be distant and you seem to have lost that smile can light a thousand suns" I heard Ahkmenrah ask me softly as he gently tilted my head to the side and kissed my neck. "Yes my darling, everything is just fine" I replied with a sigh. "I just had a bad dream. That's all" I added as I turned around and wrapped my arms around his neck as he pulled me closer to his warm, shirtless body. "Do you wish to talk about it?" he asked carefully. "Perhaps tomorrow" I said as the visions of the nightmare came into my mind as tears begun to fall down my face. After he rubbed my face to get me to calm down, he scooped me up in his arms. "Ahkmenrah my dearest, what are you doing?" I asked him as he was carrying me bridal style back to our bed. He then sat down on the bed while holding me in his arms and sat me sideways across his lap. He held me closer as he stroked my head gently. "My darling, you need your rest. Tomorrow is going to be a long day especially when we meet with the royal advisers to discuss more of the details for the wedding and crowning ceremonies. You need to get some sleep" Ahkmenrah said gently before gently kissing my forehead. "I know" I said with a sigh as I got off of his lap and onto my side of the bed and under the covers. "Whatever is bothering you, tell me and we can face it together!" He said as he got under the covers and put his arm over my waist as I turned onto my side. "Goodnight" I said as he pulled me closer to his body. "Goodnight my love" He said as he moved my hair to the side and kissed my neck. I took a deep breath before I started to fall asleep in his arms.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Something Isn't Right

"Time to wake up now your highness. You have a big day ahead of you today" I heard Anuktata's say as I heard her open the curtains. I turned over onto my side and opened my eyes to find that Ahkmenrah was not in bed. I sat up and stretched my arms. "Anuktata," I said to her as I stretched, "Where is Ahkmenrah?" I asked her as I stood up as she prepared my outfit and accessories for the day. "I remember he was talking to Ubaid earlier and had mentioned something about running some errands before his day started. He should be back by breakfast my lady." she said as she was scurrying around my room gathering up the necessities that I needed for the day. After getting ready, Anuktata and I walked downstairs to the great hall where the royal ceremony planner was waiting for me. "Ahh. Your highness!" He said as he walked towards me and took my hand before kissing it. I look over and I see Ahkmenrah entering the great hall while I was pointing out different spots of the room making suggestions on where things should be placed. He walked over and stood next to me and then kissed my free hand. "Good Morning my love." He said as he kissed me on the lips. "Morning Darling." I said with a long, tired sigh. "Is everything alright?" He asked me. "You don't seem like yourself today." he asked me concerned. I shook her head no and continued making suggestions and talking to the planner. Ahkmenrah sighed and he took the scroll with the list of everything that needed to be done for both ceremonies on it out of my hands and handed it to Anuktata. I turned to him and looked at him with confusion in my eyes. "Irissia my dearest. Please tell me what is bothering you. I'm really worried about you. Especially after last night." He pleaded with me. I looked at him and I took his hand. "Alright darling. I'll tell you. But you must promise me you will not worry." I made him promise as I started to lead him outside to the courtyard. "Your highness! Where are you going? There is MUCH work to be done!" the planner said as he yanked me away from Ahkmenrah. "I'll tell you later!" I yelled to him as the planner was whisking me away to a different room.

Later that day, Ahkmenrah and I were finally able to be alone together. He and I met up in the courtyard garden and sat down on one of the benches. I told him everything. From what the high priest had said to every detail of my nightmare. "Oh my love. I am not going anywhere!" Ahkmenrah said as he pulled me in close for a long embrace. "Wait a minute." He said to me as he looked at me with a confusing look on his face. "What is it darling?" I asked him trying to figure out what was wrong. "Something just doesn't feel right." Ahkmenrah said as he scooted away from me. 'What's wrong?" I asked very confused as to what was happening. "Iris my love," he said after he motioned for Ubaid to go over to him. Ubaid handed him a small wrapped box. "Follow me." He told me as he grabbed my hand. He lead me to a cart that was being driven by Ubaid. He put his hands on my waist and he lifted me onto the cart. He then put his hands on the cart and he got on. "Turn around." He instructed. I turned around and he put a silk blindfold on over my eyes and the cart began to move. After a while of sitting in the back of a cart blindfolded, the cart finally stopped moving. "Are we there yet? Why do I hear the sound of running water?" I asked Ahkmenrah as I heard his feet hit the soft ground as he got out. "Yes my love we are here. Please be patient" He replied as he helped me out of the back of the cart. He took my hand and guided me somewhere. "Sit down." He instructed me again as he sat me down on something soft. After helping me sit down, Ahkmenrah finally removed the blindfold. I slowly opened my eyes and I blinked multiple time to allow my eyes to adjust to the light. I stared in awe when I saw that we were in a very familiar spot by the Nile river. It was the spot where we first met and it was beautifully decorated. "Ahkmenrah! Did you do all of this?" I asked him in shock and amazement. "I had a lot of help." He replied as he sat down next to me. I wrapped my arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. "Now then, you never told me what it was that doesn't feel right" I said. "Now wait a minute." He said as he pulled away from me and scooted away from me. "This" he responded as he motioned in between us. "What I mean is that I would rather marry for love and not because someone told me to marry for diplomatic reasons. Irissia, I love you more than life itself! I would do anything for you! I would to give you the heavens if that is what you desired!" He said before he paused. "What I'm trying to say is, Irissia my one true love, will you make me the happiest man in all of Egypt by marrying me and not only becoming my wife, but my queen as well?" Ahkmenrah said as untied the ribbon off of the box and opened it up revealing a beautiful circular gold ring with a single ruby stone with small quartz stones surrounding it. "I looked at the ring in amazement. "Yes! Of course I will!" I replied as he took the ring out of the box and slid it onto my finger. "I don't want anything, not even death to keep us apart." He said as he kissed the ring on my hand. "Please follow me. There is something I wish to show you" He said as he put the blindfold back on me and took my hand. After arriving at another location, he took off the blindfold and lead me into a room filled beautiful paintings, gold, treasure, and jars ready for organs. In the back of the room was what looked like a gold piece of wall art. He and I walked over to it. "Iris my love." He said as we stopped in front of the wall art. "This is the tablet of Ahkmenrah. My father had it made out of Khonsu's magic to keep our family together, even after death." He explained as he motioned over to the tablet on the wall. "That bracelet I gave you, the gold on your ring and the gold on our wedding rings were all made with the scraps of the same gold that was used to make this tablet. "So now not even death can separate us." He took my hands and held them close to his chest. "This will be our tomb." He said as he motioned to the entire room. "Father and Mother will go here. Then me and you. And through those doors will be our servants and guards." He motioned to specific spots that had large boxes in place. He said as we came out of each other's embrace. "What about me Ahkie?" I heard Craig say as he came bursting in through the doors. "Where will you put your best friend Ahkie?" Craig said as he put his hand on Ahkmenrah's shoulder. "You will be in that other room with the guards and servants." Ahkmenrah explained to him as he pointed to another set of doors. "Why can't I be here in this room with you?" Craig whined. "This way no one can disturb you and you will always have people waiting on you hand and foot and always protecting you." Ahkmenrah said as he removed Craig's hand off of his shoulder. "Awwh Ahkie!" Craig said as he gave Ahkmenrah a big hug, "You're the greatest bro a guy could ask for!" Craig added as he hugged Ahkmenrah tighter. "Wanting to protect your best friend in the afterlife and making sure I'll be taken care of in the afterlife! What more could a guy like me ask for!" Craig said as he kept hugging Ahkmenrah tighter and tighter. "Craig let him go." I said to Craig as Ahkmenrah tried to break free of his embrace. "Ooooh shiny~ What is this?" he asked as he grabbed my hand and examined my ring. "What does it look like Craig? It's an engagement ring" Ahkmenrah pointed out. "But aren't you guys already engaged?" Craig asked. "Well yes. But as you know, I would rather marry for love and not because someone told me to marry for diplomatic reasons. Iris is the love of my life Craig, and I want her to always have a reminder of that." Ahkmenrah said as he looked over at me and smiled. "What are you doing here anyways Craig? How did you even get in here?" Ahkmenrah asked Craig who was mesmerized by my ring. "Craig!" Ahkmenrah yelled at him trying to get his attention. "Oh easy!" Craig said as he looked away from my ring. "I got bored, saw you guys, and I decided that I would just follow you." Craig explained. "Now, come on. Let's go eat!" Craig said as he pushed Ahkmenrah and I out of the tomb.

We left the tomb and went back to the palace for lunch. The lunch was peaceful, aside from the noises Craig was making as he scarfed down his food "Hey, this stuff is really good! What is it?" he asked in between mouthfuls of food. "That would be puffed dough that was brought over from Greece." Ahkmenrah explained. "Dude, this stuff is the best thing since my birth! And we all know how awesome that turned out!" Craig said strangely serious. It was not like him to be that serious. He only gets like that whenever he's defending Ahkmenrah.

Later that afternoon, Ahkmenrah and I laid in the bath together talking about the details for the ceremonies and anything else that came to mind and playing footsie under the water. We then heard the door to our room open and we heard Craig calling Ahkmenrah's name. "If we keep quiet, do you think he will go away?" Ahkmenrah whispered to me while Craig did whatever he wanted in our room. I shrugged and we kept silent as we laid our heads on the rim of the large tub we were in, letting the steam of the bath and the smell of the flowers and plants relax our bodies and minds. We both breathed deeply as the only sounds that were heard were the soft flickering of the candles and the muted sounds of Craig in our room. I never will understand his fascination with going through Ahkmenrah and I's belongings.

"What is THIS?!" we heard Craig yell in anger. Ahkmenrah and I jolted up in our bath and we quickly put on the robes that were provided. "Hey Ahkie! Come see what I found!" Craig called. Ahkmenrah and I went into our room and we saw Craig holding up a piece of paper and waving it around in the air. "What is it?" Ahkmenrah asked curiously. Craig glared at me as he adjusted the paper in front of his face and began to read it out loud...


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: The Fight

Craig began reading what was on the paper out loud.

"_My love. It pains me to write this for I would love to be able to run with you and leave everything so we could be together. However, something has come and what it is. I wish I could tell you. All I can tell you is I have found my father to marry for benefit._ _No man could ever take your place. I will forget you and I will always for you will always have my heart" _Craig read in a high pitched mocking voice.

"Where did you find that?" I asked him as I tried to grab the paper out of his hands. "Uh Uh Uh!" He said as he held the paper up higher with one hand and wiggled his finger from side to side with his free hand. Ahkmenrah grabbed the paper out of his hands and began to read it to himself. "Ahkmenrah. It's not what you think it is!" I pleaded with him as I tried to get the letter out of his hands. "Then what is it?!" He demanded. "I.." I tried to say before Ahkmenrah put his hand up to stop me from speaking. "How dare you do this to me. We have known each other for over ten years! I loved you even before I knew who you really are!" Ahkmenrah said as he turned away from me. "Let's go Craig. I want to spend time with someone I know that I can trust" Ahkmenrah said as he grabbed a change of clothes and stormed out of the room with Craig following closely behind him carrying a medium sized box. I sunk to the ground and broke down in tears watching the love of my life walk out on me as the large doors were then slammed shut.

Later that evening, dinner was quiet. Ahkmenrah sat far away from me while Craig sat close to him in where I would normally sit. Throughout the whole dinner, Craig kept giving me dirty looks and Ahkmenrah continued to ignore me.

After dinner, Ahkmenrah and I went to separate bathing chambers to freshen up. As I was getting ready for the nightly ceremony, I couldn't help but feel sad and angry at the same time. I had lost the love of my life but he didn't want to hear my explanation. When we got to the temple, we were forced to sit next to each other and even then he wouldn't even glance over at me. After getting back to what was supposed to be our room, I walked out onto the balcony to get some fresh air and to clear my head. A few minutes later, I heard the door come open and when I glanced over, I saw Ahkmenrah walked in with Ubaid and Craig to gather some of his belongings. I quickly grabbed Ahkmenrah's arm and he looked at me, annoyance and anger clear on his face. "Ahkmenrah please just listen to me!" I begged as I held his arm tight. "I am not in the mood for this Irissia!" He scolded as he yanked his arm out of my grasp with a harsh shove that knocked me down onto the floor. "Craig, Ubaid, let's go. We have all that I require" he said coldly as he walked out of the room with Craig following behind him. Before Ubaid exited the room, he looked at me sorrowfully seeing my tear filled eyes. After looking away from me, he looked into the hall when Ahkmenrah's voice was heard calling him harshly. Ubaid looked back at me one last time and he gave me a small nod before he left.

I lay there on the ground as I watched him, Ubaid and Craig walk out of the room with some of his belongings. After crying for a while I got cleaned up and dressed for bed. That night was one of the hardest nights I ended up crying myself to sleep. The next morning I woke up earlier than usual before Anuktata came to wake me up. I rolled over onto my other side and noticed that Ahkmanrah was still not there. Remembering what had happened, I lay there in bed alone crying some more.

"Good Morning your highness." Anuktata said as she came into my room. "You are up rather early this morning. Are you feeling alright?" She asked me as she helped me out of my night clothes and into a bath. I sighed. "Ahkmanrah and I got into a fight last night over some old letter that Craig found while rummaging through our stuff." I said as I avoided eye contact with her. "I see." She said as she washed my hair. "I am sure things will get better soon. You just have to talk to him that's all." She added as she rinsed the soap out of my hair. I sunk lower into the tub. "I'll go get your things ready for today." Anuktata said as she wiped her hands off with a towel and left the room. I sat there alone in the tub for a while. After a few minutes, Anuktata came back in as I was sinking lower and lower into the tub. "Come now your highness. Let's get you out and dried off before you get all shriveled up like a mummy!" She said as she forced me out of the tub. As I was getting dried off and my bottom layers on, I couldn't help but look at the bracelet that Ahkmanrah gave to me. "Arms up your highness." Anuktata said as she lifted up my arms to put on my top layer. "I picked out this outfit special for today." She said as she put my other jewelry and accessories on. I sat down at my desk and before I could put my head down, Anuktata came over and started to style my hair. After it was styled, she put my headpiece on and added a few finishing touches. "There we are your highness! You look absolutely stunning!" She said as she took me to the mirror. As I looked in the mirror, I couldn't see what the others saw. I didn't see this supposedly beautiful princess. All I saw was me. Nothing special. After being pulled away from the mirror and towards the door, Anuktata and I saw Ubaid walk by. "Oh Ubaid! Just the person I would like to see!" Anuktata said as she caught his attention. Ubaid walked into the room and bowed before me. 'Your highness, you look especially beautiful today." He said as he bowed. "Thank you Ubaid." I replied to him. "Ubaid, I need your help with something. I am not sure that you are aware but Ahkmanrah and I got into a fight last night and I need your help so I can get him alone so I can explain the situation." I pleaded with him. "Anything you wish your highness." Ubaid said with a bow. "I will try my best." He said as be stood up and walked out of the room.

Throughout the day, it was very awkward between Ahkmanrah and I. We sat together when we were forced to but other than that, there was no contact between us. After the morning ceremony, breakfast and a visit to the town and then lunch, it was time to meet with the ceremony planner to review the wedding and crowning ceremony plans. In the meeting, Ahkmanrah sat silent and while I tried to get him to talk by asking for his opinions on things, not a word was spoken to me. After the meeting, we went our separate ways. Ahkmanrah went with Craig and I went back to the city to help out the citizens. After putting in a hard day's work, I returned to the palace and got washed up and changed. After I was finished and dressed down for the evening, I went for a walk around the palace grounds. While on my walk, I ran into Ahkmanrah's mother, Shepseheret who was accompanied by Ximena, her personal servant and of course her two guards, Masud and Tsafento. "Iris! What a nice surprise to see you my dear!" She said as she walked towards me to hug me. "Oh Queen Shepseheret! It is a nice surprise to see you here." I replied as I hugged her back. "Come sit!" She said as she motioned over to a spot near the pond. We sat down together and she told me about how excited she is for Ahkmanrah and I. She paused mid sentence. "Say Iris, is everything ok between you two? Usually you two are so close!" She said as she put her hand on my shoulder. I sighed. "Well to be honest. No. Ahkmanrah and I got into a fight over something and I can't get him to listen to me." I replied as I put my hand on my head trying to fight back tears. "Sounds like what you two need is a heart to heart." She said as she put her fingers under my chin and forced me to look up at her. I could tell that she saw the tears in my eyes as she put her arms around me and gave me a big motherly hug. After talking for a while, we were informed that it was time for dinner. Shepseheret and I walked to dinner together just talking. After dinner and the sunset/moonrise ceremony, I was finally able to catch up to Ahkmanrah and get him to listen to me. "Listen Ahkmanrah, like it or not, we still have to get married and rule together side by side." I said as I grabbed onto his arm tight. "I'll tell you what, if you just listen to me and let me explain, if you want to call off the wedding then that's fine. I'll leave in the morning and you never have to see or hear from me ever again." I said as I tried to bargain with him. "Very well." Ahkmanrah said. I let go of his arm and we began to walk towards the palace. Along the way, Ahkmanrah told Craig to follow us. The three of us got to the palace and into what was supposed to be OUR room. After shutting the doors, Ahkmanrah and Craig sat down on the couches. "Listen Ahkmanrah. That letter was not what you think it was. Read it for yourself!" I said as I began explaining. Craig took out the letter and gave it to Ahkmenrah to read. "_My dearest love. It pains me to write this to you for I would love to be able to run away with you and leave everything behind so we could be together. However, something has come up and I can't reveal what it is. I really wish I could tell you everything but all I can tell you is that I have found out that my father arranged for me to marry someone I have never met just for his benefit._ _No man could ever take your place in my heart. I will never forget you and I will always deeply care for you, for you will always have my heart no matter what." _Ahkmenrah looked at the paper. "WHO was this for then?" Ahkmenrah said as he handed me the letter. "Technically it was for you. But when I found out that you were not only the prince I was betrothed to, but also the mysterious man of the Nile that I was madly in love with!" I replied as I tried not to sound too confusing. "So you mean to tell me that you were breaking up with me so that you could marry me?" Ahkmenrah said puzzled. "Yes and No." I said. "I was never going to give it to you because I wanted to do it face to face so that I could see you one last time before getting married to a mysterious prince. And besides, I had no idea that you were not only my mysterious love, but also the prince I am marrying!" I added as I tried to explain the situation.

"That is, if you will still have me" I said meekly. "Of course my love. I am truly sorry for being such a hard headed buffon "Ahkmenrah responded lovingly.

"Well what about _THIS _letter that I found with it?" Craig asked as he held up another letter and waved it out in my face. Craig began to read it...


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: The Day Before

"Read it out loud Craig!" Ahkmenrah said to Craig who was reading it to himself. "Ahem" Craig said as he cleared his throat. "My soil burns to bathe in my arms." Craig began to read out loud. Ahkmenrah looked at him with a puzzled look on his face. "Craig. Let me see that!" Ahkmenrah said as he quickly snatched the other piece of paper out of his hand. He then facepalmed.

"My soul yearns to be able to be to bask in your eternal beauty and to have you in my arms in a loving yet tender embrace" Ahkmenrah looked Craig with a furious look on his face. "Your eyes shine brighter than the stars!" Ahkmenrah added as he finished reading. "Craig! These are MY letters to her!" Ahkmenrah said with fury as he glanced up at Craig and motioned to the box of letters Craig had brought with him."So then all of these other letters were from you Ahkie?" He asked Ahkmenrah as he held up the box of letters. "Yes Craig." Ahkmenrah said very annoyed. Ahkmenrah then looked over at me. "You saved all of my letters?" He asked. "Of course I did! I even read each and every one of them over and over again every single night whenever I was alone and in need of company." I said as I looked at Ahkmenrah. "My love, I am so sorry about the way I have treated you. I should have listened to your explanation rather than rushing to conclusions. Can you ever forgive me?" Ahkmenrah pleaded with me as he grabbed my hand and held onto it tight between both of his hands. I put my other hand on his cheek. "Of course I can. And I do." I said as I moved my hand up to his hair and ran my fingers through his soft hair. He smiled at me and pulled me in for a hug. It felt like the biggest and warmest hug I had ever received.

"Well, now that all of _THAT _is over, what do you say we go out on the town to celebrate?!" Craig suggested enthusiastically as he came between Ahkmenrah and I and but his arms over both of our shoulders. "How about _THIS _Craig. Iris and I will go out while YOU go gather all of my things and put them back in Irissia and I's room. Ubaid will be watching you so you don't slack off. And NO more snooping around!" Ahkmenrah said as he and I took his arm off of our shoulders and Ahkmenrah pushed Craig out of the way. "I make no promises about the not snooping part!" Craig called as he was escorted out by the royal guards back to Ahkmenrah's room. He took my hand and pulled me in close towards his chest and kissed my lips while he put his hand in my hand and we walked out of the room happily while holding each other's hands.

After leaving the room, Ahkmenrah and I went out for a walk within the palace walls. After being informed that all of Ahkmenrah's belongings had been moved back, he and I returned back to what is once again _OUR _room.

Before going to bed, we decided to relax on the couches. I laid my head on his shoulder as he wrapped one of his arms around my shoulder while his other hand was holding my hand. "My love, I can not express to you how sorry I am about the fight. I-" He said before I put one finger on his lips. "Shhh. My darling. It's okay. It was just a big misunderstanding on Craig's part. That's all." I said as I moved my hand onto his cheek. He smiled and then kissed the palm of my hand. I sat up and moved onto his lap. As we stared into each other's eyes, he put his hand under my chin and pulled me in for a long yet passionate kiss. As we kissed, he rubbed up and down my back and my outer leg. He pulled me in for a deeper kiss. He leaned me back and put his arms under my legs and neck. He picked me up in his arms as he stood up and started to carry me to our bed. Ahkmenrah then gently put me down under the covers and then walked over onto his side and got under the covers with me. "Goodnight my love." Ahkmenrah said as he kissed me on the lips. "Goodnight my darling" I said to him as I held his face with both of my hands and pulled him in for a longer kiss.

The next morning, we woke up early so we would get some more alone time. "Good morning my prince." I said as I woke up to see Ahkmenrah staring lovingly at me. "Good morning my princess." He said before he lightly pecked my lips softly. We both smiled and we just laid there looking into each other's eyes. "Let's just hope that Craig isn't up yet!" Ahkmenrah said with a husky chuckle. "Very true. Who KNOWS what he would get into!" I said before letting out a chuckle.

We leaned in slowly for another kiss when suddenly we heard a knock at our door. "Knock knock~" we heard Craig call in a sing song voice from the other side of our door. "Oh crap he's up" Ahkmenrah said as he rolled his eyes. "It's a good thing we have the guard at the door and that it is locked from the inside" I said slyly. "Hey! Let me in! I wanna be where you guys are!" We heard Craig say. "I swear, he's just like a giant child" Ahkmenrah said. "I heard that!" Craig called. "I know~" Ahkmenrah called back loudly, mocking his tone from earlier.

"I wonder where Anuktata and Ubaid are. Usually they are in here getting us out of bed" Ahkmenrah said as he turned on his back and stretched his arms. "I told them to get a bath ready for us and lay out the bottom layers of our clothes so that after our bath they can come in and finish getting us ready" I told him as I sat up on the bed and stretched. Ahkmenrah crawled over to my side of the bed and put his arms around my waist. I smiled as I could feel his soft hands touching me. I tried to stand up from the bed but Ahkmenrah pulled me back onto the bed towards his chest and he held me close to his body. "Please stay my love. We still have time before we must get ready" he said. "Hey! What are you guys doing? Let me in already, I wanna snoop- er I mean see you guys!" we heard Craig whine from outside of our door. "Go away Craig!" Ahkmenrah yelled! "But Ahkie! I wanna be where you are!" Craig whined. Ahkmenrah rolled his eyes and held me tighter. "I wish we could stay like this forever!" Ahkmenrah said as he held me tightly. "I know my darling but we must get up and get ready now. We have much to do before the ceremonies!" I said as I broke away from Ahkmenrah. "Come on guys! Let me in!" Craig whined.

"What about you know who?" I asked. Ahkmenrah put up a hand. "My dear, I've got this" he said. "Craig!" he called. "What?!" Craig yelled back. "Do me a favor and get me a pink lotus flower with spirals, a blue papyrus reed, and a single grain of wheat" Ahkmenrah said. "Anything for you bro" Craig responded. We waited a few moments to hear if Craig was gone. Ahkmenrah put a finger to his lips and he slowly went to the door and opened it a litte. "Thank the gods he's gone" he said happily as he slowly closed the door.

He and I stood up and walked towards our bathing chamber. As we were in our bath, we heard Anuktata, Ubaid and the other servants go into our room. "Sounds like Anuktata and Ubaid are getting everything ready for us." Ahkmenrah said. "Lay down right here." Ahkmenrah said as he motioned to the platform above the bath. I shrugged my shoulders and did as he asked. After moving my hair out of his way, I felt his hands go on my back and he started to massage my back. "Ahkmenrah my darling, what are you doing?" I asked him as I could feel his hands working into the tight spots in my back. "I am just trying to pamper my soon to be wife and show her how much she means to me." He said as he kept going. We then heard a loud banging on the door before Craig barged in with a tray. "I couldn't find _exactly_ what you wanted. But. Okay, I gave up after like five minutes. But! I got you guys something _even _better!" Craig announced happily. 'At least he's honest' I thought to myself as Ahkmenrah covered my back up with a towel. I looked up to see Craig presenting us with a tray of… fried dough? Ahkmenrah looked at Craig with a 'really' look and Craig only shrugged as he kept eyeing the tray. "You had one job Craig! One job!" Ahkmenrah said as he held up a finger. "Hey, technically I did my job. I got you guys _something. _Plus, I'm still here so it's a win-win situation!" Craig said confidently. Ahkmenrah facepalmed as Craig placed down the fray. He then looked over at the tray and he slowly grabbed one, thinking that we wouldn't notice. He then reached for another one and another one after that until only one remained. "Are you guys gonna eat that?" he asked. Ahkmenrah and I looked at each other flabbergasted. "Go ahead Craig" I said as I motioned to the last (and only) fried dough. "You guys are awesome" Craig said as he took the food from the tray.

"Craig, Do you mind?!" Ahkmenrah said slightly angry at him. "''Corse not!" Craig said "Hey Ahkie, what ya doin on top of Iris?" Craig said as he shoved the last fried dough ball into his already full mouth. Ahkmenrah let out a big sigh out of irritation. "Craig. I am _trying _to spend time with her before our ceremonies in a few days." Ahkmenrah said as he tried to get Craig to go away. "Oh, Is she naked?" Craig said as he tried to look at my clearly nude body. Ahkmenrah rolled his eyes and let out a groan of frustration. "Craig. Leave. NOW!" Ahkmenrah said, clearly getting angrier and angrier by the second. "Okay. fine! But I WILL be back! Just don't blame me if you guys catch me snooping around your room again!" He said as he started to leave the room. "We are all going to do something later ok? It's gonna be awesome!" He said as he FINALLY left the room. "Now that I FINALLY get you all to myself, shall we pick up where we left off?" He said in a flirtatious manner. He flipped me over onto my back and started to kiss me passionately. Suddenly, the door burst open and Ahkmenrah lowered a towel onto my body so that Craig would not see me. "Oh hey, you're naked. Nice ass bro!" Craig said. "Hey Iris, nice-" Craig started to say. "Craig!" Ahkmenrah yelled at him before he could say another word. "Okay, okay! Sheesh. But are you guys sure you want to go through the pain of me leaving again?" Craig asked. "Yes! Now go!" Ahkmenrah yelled and Craig flinched. "As much as it pains us to see you go I guess we will just have to deal with the pain of not being able to be in your wondrous presence until later. " I said sarcastically.

Craig then FINALLY left and Anuktata and Ubaid came in with other servants that were carrying our clothes and accessories for the start of our day. After being separated from each other and dressed and ready for the day, I was finally able to see my beloved Ahkmenrah when I went downstairs to meet the others before going to the temple for the morning ceremony. After the ceremony and breakfast, it was time to take a trip into town to see the citizens before we became their new rulers. "It's hard to believe that in three days, you and I will be King Ahkmenrah and Queen Irissia." Ahkmenrah said as we rode side by side while holding hands. "I find it hard to believe that this is my last day with you and I being Prince Ahkmenrah of the South and Princess Irissia of the North. Soon, you shall be pharoah and I shall be your queen and all of Egypt will have been unified!" I said as I placed my head on his shoulder.

As we approached the school, we saw the children dressed up and holding flowers in their hands. Anuktata and Ubaid opened the doors and had the guards help us out of the wagon. "What is going on here?" Ahkmenrah asked as he helped me out of the wagon. "The children arranged a special surprise for you two." Anuktata said as she and Ubaid bowed to us. Suddenly, Ahkmenrah and I were being surrounded by the children. Out of the crowd, one small child stepped out and held out a small bouquet of a mixture of flowers and handed it to me. "Here princess." The small child said as they handed me the bouquet. "Thank you very much!" I said as I bent down and took the flowers. Another one handed me a flower crown that was made up of the jasmine flowers that are found by the Nile River. While the little girls were putting various jewelry made out of flowers on me, the little boys were leading Ahkmenrah inside. We then heard one of the boys whistle and the little girls all nodded to each other. They then proceed to lead me inside. Once inside, I was surprised to see Ahkmenrah standing at the other end of the room surrounded by the little boys that were waiting for me and the little girls. The little girls then guided me to the front of the room and they had me stand across from Ahkmenrah.

"Dearwly bewoved, we gather here todway to watch Pwrincess Iwris and Pwrince Awkmanwah get mawried!" The youngest little boy said and the other children cheered happily. Ahkmenrah and I looked at each other and smiled. "Pwrince Awkmanwah do you pwromise to wove, fweed, cwlose and make her happy?" The little boy asked Ahkmenrah. "I do." he said as he looked at the little boy and then at me. "Pwrincess Iwris, do you pwromise to wove, fweed, cwlose and make him happy?" he asked me as he turned to look at me. "I do." I said as I looked at the little boy and then at Ahkmenrah. All of the children cheered. "By the powah vwested in me bwy the waffle code of dwibs. I now prownounce you mawrried!" the little boy said happily. All the children clapped their hands and cheered. "You may now hug weach over." he said as Ahkmenrah and I smiled more and then hugged eachother. "And now it's snack time!" he said excitedly, to which the children cheered even louder. "You may kiss the bride" I said softly as the children were all stuffing their faces full of food. "I thought you would never ask!" Ahkmenrah responded. We then closed our eyes and as we leaned into each other, we didn't see Craig slowly rising up from the ground as we were leaning in for a kiss. We opened our eyes when we felt our lips touch Craig's cheeks _again_. "Hi! It's me again! Glad to see you guys still love me! Although how could you not?!" Craig said as we pulled our faces away from his. "So I got bored snooping around your room so I thought that I would come stalk you guys" Craig added as I kissed Ahkmenrah on the cheek. After 'celebrating our marriage' with the children, we thanked the children for all that they did today for our 'beautiful ceremony'. After thanking them, we said our goodbyes and left for the palace for the nightly ceremony at the temple and then dinner.

Later that evening, Ahkmenrah and I were enjoying the last moments we had together before we were separated for the night until the ceremony tomorrow. We were currently out on our balcony laying on a blanket under the stars. Ahkmenrah and I were laying on our sides and facing each other. Our legs were entwined and he had his arms on my lower back while mine rested on his chest. "I can't believe that tomorrow we are going to be married!" I said. "Technically we are already married. But, the ceremony tomorrow will be the unifying of Egypt through our kingdoms. So in a way we are being unified tomorrow." He responded. "Can't you just say that you're excited too?" I asked rhetorically. "Right. Forgive me. I truly am excited to make all of Egypt know that you are my wife and that I in turn am your husband" he said lovingly. He then placed a kiss on my head and I snuggled into his chest. "Your highness. It is time to leave." Anuktata said as she came into the room. "I wish you didn't have to go." Ahkmenrah said to me as he gave me one last kiss before tomorrow. "I know my darling. But I must." I said as I stood up before Anuktata and I walked out of the room.

* * *

Yes, we meant to use Waffle instead of wawful (Lawful)

Wove (Love), fweed (Feed), cwlose (Clothe) and make him/her happy


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Till Death Do Us Part

The following morning, I awoke to an empty bed and Anuktata making sure everything was where it needed to be before I got cleaned up and dressed. "Time to get up and out of bed your highness. Today is going to be a very big and busy day!" she said as she helped me get out of bed. She then made me stand up out of bed so she could escort me to the bathing chambers. After getting washed up, dressed and paying my respects at the temple, it was time for me to start getting ready for the ceremony. I heard a knock at my door. When Anuktata answered it, I saw my family rush in with their guards and servants. After hugging my mother, brothers and father, we were brought snacks and drinks to have while we caught up. "Knock Knock!" I heard someone say. I looked over and I saw Sharifa standing in my doorway. "Sharifa! Where have you been? I have been so worried about you!" I said as I rushed over to hug her tight. "I have been taking care of some things. But that doesn't matter now. All that matters is that you are getting married today!" She said with a slight bit of malice in her voice. But since I was getting married to the love of my life, I didn't really notice. After catching up with my family and Sharifa, it was time for me to get cleaned up once more and dressed. "We want to make sure you look your very best today!" My mother said as she walked into the bathing chambers with me. While I was getting cleaned up, my mother was picking out a scent for me to wear and making sure I had everything for the ceremony that I would need. After I was done, I got the bottom layers of my outfit on. I bid goodbye to my father and brothers so that they could go get ready for the ceremony as well. After they left, the room was filled with noise from my mother getting ready and ordering around the servants as she tried to make sure everything was perfect. As she was getting ready, I got to relax while I got my nails and toenails scrubbed.

After everyone was ready, and I was dressed and had on everything I needed for the ceremony, the high priest came in and lead everyone in prayers and asked the gods to 'bless this sacred marriage'. When the high priest was finished, he left and my mother, Sharifa, and I were escorted to where the ceremony was taking place. Looking around, I saw people carrying flowers, decorations, food, and one person that was heavily guarded carrying my Hedjet and Ahkmenrah's Deshret for the ceremony. As we were walking, I heard the citizens, servants and other guests whisper amongst each other and make comments about how beautiful I looked.

Once we got to the ceremony, I was escorted into a room where my mother was making some final adjustments to my appearance while the guards patrolled the area and made sure no harm would come to me. After my mother was finished, Markata came in and informed me that he had spoken with Shoshan and that everything was ready for the ceremony to begin. I looked out of my window to see the high priest walking to his place, then Ahkmenrah's parents walking while being followed by their guards, then my parents and their guards. Next, came my brothers and then I finally saw my beloved Ahkmenrah all dressed up walking to his place at the altar. "Your highness, it is time." Markata said as he motioned for the guards and servants to start walking to their places. While walking to my place, I felt excited yet nervous at the same time. A part of me wanted to break free of the guards and run into his arms while the other part of me wanted to freeze in my steps. When I finally reached my place at the altar, Ahkmenrah and I looked at eachother and when he looked at me, I could see the same sparkle in his eyes as the first day we met that fateful day ten years ago.

"Ladies and Gentleman! Kings and Queens and esteemed guests. We gather here today in front of the great god Set to witness the unification of Egypt!" The priest began to say. "Prince Ahkmenrah of the South, do you promise to always love, feed, clothe, protect, make her happy and live together peacefully forever and into the afterlife?" the priest said as he turned to Ahkmenrah. "I do solemnly promise." Ahkmenrah responded as the high priest cut a small slit on the palm of Ahkmenrah's hand after he slipped a small golden ring onto my finger. "And do you Princess Irissia of the North, promise to always love, feed, clothe, protect, make him happy and live together peacefully forever and into the afterlife?" he asked me as he turned towards me. "I do solemnly promise." I responded as the priest cut a small slit in the palm of my hand after I put a golden ring onto Ahkmenrah's finger. "You may now join hands." The priest said as he grabbed my hand and then Ahkmenrah's hand and placed them together. While our palmes touched, we turned towards the audience for the crowning. "Prince Ahkmenrah of the South and Princess Irissia of the North, with the passing of the crown, you shall be pronounced King Ahkmenrah and Queen Irissia. May our great kingdom remain unified for the rest of all eternity." The priest said as our crowns were placed upon our heads. After getting crowned, the audience cheered for us and we turned to the priest one last time with our palms touching. "I now pronounce you, King Ahkmenrah and Queen Irissia, husband and wife." The priest said as he turned to both of us. "You may now kiss your bride." The priest said as he turned to Ahkmenrah. Ahkmenrah and I smiled at each other. He pulled me in close and we kissed. "I now present you with King Ahkmenrah and Queen Irissia. Rulers of all Egypt!" The priest said as he addressed the very large crowd. They cheered even louder as Ahkmenrah and I walked down the stairs and to the horse drawn carriage waiting for us. We got into the carriage and as we were driven off, crowds of people gathered to cheer and congratulate us on our union. "So where are we going now?" Ahkmenrah and I heard Craig say as he came out of nowhere. "Were you there the entire time Craig?" Ahkmenrah asked him. "Not the entire time. Just after the priest guy cut your hand. After that, I got bored of just standing there. So, I decided to have a little party of my own and somehow, I ended up here!" He explained as he put his arm around Ahkmenrah's shoulder and the other arm around mine. "So, where are we going?" Craig asked us cluelessly. "Well Ahkmenrah and I are going to go visit Northern Egypt and stay there for a while while my parents and brothers are away" I told Craig as I took his arm off of my shoulder. "Oh neat!" Craig said as he put his other arm over Ahkmenrah's other shoulder. "At least I get to be with my best bro!" Craig added as he hugged Ahkmenrah tight. "Actually Craig, Iris and I will be the active rulers over there while we are there" Ahkmenrah told Craig as he took both of Craig's arms off of him. A while later we arrived at the boat and while my parents and brothers got onto the boat with their guards and serants, Ahkmenrah and I took one last look around to take in the view of our new home one last time before sailing off. Ahkmenrah and I then got onto the boat with our guards and servants following behind us. "Hey guys! Wait for me!" Craig yelled out as he ran onto the boat. When everyone was on the boat, we set sail for my old home. Hours passed and when we finally arrived at the dock, I felt overwhelmed with joy. I remembered all of the memories that I had here and what my life was like before getting betrothed. "Is everything alright?" I heard Ahkmenrah ask me as he wrapped his arms around my waist tight and kiss my neck. "Everything is fine. I am just getting a nostalgic feeling" I replied as he stopped kissing my neck. After the servants got the boat docked and tied down, we were able to walk off of the boat while the servants unloaded the belongings that we had brought with us. "Welcome home my daughter" My father said to me as he held out his hand to help me off of the boat. "Thank you father. It is such a wonderful feeling to be back again" I replied as I jumped off of the boat. "You were always the reckless one Iris" I heard my brother Anhuris say to me as he got off of the boat. "You must be careful Iris. Someone as _delicate _and _fragile _such as yourself should not be doing such dangerous things!" Napophsis said as he mocked what my father would say to me growing up. "Oh haha" I said tauntingly as I playfully hit his arm. "Ok you two that's enough! Get in so we can get back to the palace." I heard our mother yell back at us as she got into the carriage. My brothers and I raced off to the carriage and I ended up getting there first. "Ha! Even in this attire, I can still defeat you!" I said tauntingly to my brothers who followed behind me. When everyone was in the carriages, we headed for the palace that I used to call home. "Here it is!" I said excitedly to Ahkmenrah and Craig as our carriage pulled through the palace gate. When the carriage was stopped, the door was unlocked and opened. "Welcome back princess" Rahkorta and Hartatef said as they helped me out of the carriage. After my feet touched the ground, I ran for the palace door and ran inside to the throne room. A few moments later, everyone walked into the throne room where I was still looking around at everything. "Someone's happy to be back" Horusaha said as they entered the room. After taking a deep breath to take everything in, I saw Ahkmenrah enter the room with Craig on his back. Later that day after paying our respects at the temple, I took Ahkmenrah for a tour around the palace and I showed him all of the secret passageways and all of my old hiding spots. When the tour was over, we headed to the dining hall and after eating and getting washed up, we decided to relax in my old room for the rest of the night.

Early that next morning, my parents and brothers left with their guards and servants. Ahkmenrah and I were woken up to get ready for the day. "Ready for our first day as rulers?" I asked Ahkmenrah as our crowns got put on our heads. "I am ready for anything as long as you are by my side" Ahkmenrah said to me has he took my hand and kissed it. After our morning duties were finished, it was time to greet the citizens. We arrived in the city streets where the people were waiting for us. They offered us bouquets of flowers and homemade food. Our servants took the offerings and took them back to the palace. Ahkmenrah stood back and watched as I played with the young children and Craig was trying to get into the food that had been offered to us. When it was time for us to leave, we bid the citizens farewell and headed back to the palace. A few months later, my brothers and parents came back home with their guards and servants and Ahkmenrah and I headed back to what will be our home. After a while of sailing we reached the docks one last time. After docking and getting off of the ship, we headed back for the palace. We arrived at the palace a short time later that night and while the servants got our things unpacked, Ahkmenrah and I had some time to catch up with his parents. "How was the trip my child?" His mother asked him as she hugged him tight. After we finished telling his parents all about our trip, he headed to our room while Craig headed straight for the kitchen. We settled in for the night and went to sleep.

A year passed since our union and our trip back to my old home and things could not have been going any better. You could say that everything is going better than anyone could have expected! Citizen morale was at its highest, there was a bountiful harvest, everyone had jobs and homes, and the crime rate was at its lowest. Ahkmenrah and I ruled over our kingdom with kindness, respect and a firm hand to those who required punishment. Even though things may change, the one thing that will never ever change is the fact that Craig still follows Ahkmenrah around everywhere he goes like a little lost puppy and tries to get between us whenever we are alone together and without him. Deep down I think that Ahkmenrah enjoys his company. He may not always show it, but I think that he really cares for Craig deep down. I on the other hand think that it's kinda cute. Sometimes." I said aloud as I was writing it down in my journal. I put my writing utensil down and then I put my journal away. After the chaos that I had to deal with this morning, it was well worth it to be able to have some time to myself so that I could write in my journal. From, waking up alone in bed and freaking out because of worry, having to go to morning prayers alone, and not to mention how Craig nearly set himself on fire as we were walking through the halls. "It's hard to believe that it has already been one year that Ahkmenrah and I were married and crowned King and Queen." I thought to myself as I stared at my engagement and wedding ring. Remembering all of the times I have had with Ahkmenrah while being his queen and wife, I couldn't help but to smile and sigh happily. "We may have had our tough times, arguments and disagreements, but love always finds a way to make things work itself out." I thought again to myself as I kept staring at the rings on my fingers and the bracelet on my wrist. Suddenly, I heard the door open. I turned around and saw Ahkmenrah walking into the room. I stood up from the desk and started to walk towards him.

"Are you ready my love? The people are waiting for us." I heard Ahkmenrah say as he entered our room. "Yes. Of course my darling. As long as I am with you, I am ready for anything that comes our way." I replied as Ahkmenrah and I embraced each other. "I am terribly sorry I did not make it to the morning ceremony. I had other matters to attend to." He said before kissing my head. "It was no problem my darling. I understand that you were busy." I wrapped my arms around his neck and we leaned in for a long kiss. After being escorted to the school for a public meeting with the townspeople, Ahkmenrah and I took our place at the front of the classroom. Craig decided to wait outside and play with the children. One after the other, the citizens came in and spoke their minds. Some made requests for us to consider, others suggested ways to improve our kingdom and the rest just wanted to meet us face to face and tell us about how we were doing as their rulers. After meeting with the citizens, it was time to head back to the palace. We thanked everyone for coming and told them about how we will consider their requests and suggestions. "Remember, if you wish to make a suggestion, wait for us to come again next week or write it down and put it in the box in the center of the town square." I said to the citizens announcing the new suggestion system. Ahkmenrah and I were then escorted back to the palace. We enjoyed a lovely lunch before going to the evening ceremony. After giving thanks to the gods and our nightly prayers, Ahkmenrah and I headed back to the palace for dinner and a quiet evening to ourselves. After eating dinner and catching up, Ahkmenrah and I decided to do what we loved to do at this time of night. We walked around the palace gardens together while Craig followed closely behind us with the guards. After enjoying time in the gardens, we decided to go relax in the courtyard before bed. I sat down on a bench near the pond while Craig was enjoying himself while he was trying to climb to the top of the tallest tree. "Be careful Craig! If you fall, you will hurt yourself!" I said to Craig as he tried to start climbing up the tree. "I know I can do it!" He yelled to me as he started to climb up the tree. "Some people will never listen." I said as I rolled my eyes and shook my head. "Tonight's the night I finally tell him!" I said to myself as I put my hand over my stomach. "What's wrong Iris? Not feeling well?" I heard Craig ask me as he slid down off of the tree trunk. "I feel just fine Craig" I replied to him as he walked over to me. "Then why are you rubbing your stomach if it doesn't hurt?" He asked me again. "To tell you the truth Craig, I am carrying Ahkmenrah's child. Whatever you do don't tell him!" I told Craig as I made him swear not to tell Ahkmenrah the news. "Iris! That's wonderful news! I'm going to be an uncle! Imagine me! Uncle Craig!" He said as he put an arm around my shoulder. "Craig, shh. You can't tell anyone!" I reminded him. "Got it!" He said with a wink as he ran off to go climb up the tree again. A few minutes later, Ahkmenrah came into the courtyard and sat down next to me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. "Hello my love. Sorry I so am late. I got held up. Did you miss me?" He asked me playfully as he sat down beside me. "Of course I did." I said as I kissed him on the cheek after he sat down. Ahkmenrah put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me in close to him. I laid my head down on his shoulder and put my hand in his. We sat there cuddling and holding hands while we watched Craig constantly fall down from the tree and then climb right back up. After Craig disappeared from sight, I picked my head up and turned to Ahkmenrah. "Ahkmenrah my darling, there is something I wish to tell you. I-" I said as I held his hand between mine. "Me first. Wait right here my love. I will be right back. I have something for you." He said with a cheeky smile before I could finish my sentence. Ahkmenrah then stood up and left. "Craig, are you ok?" I yelled up into the tree as I tried to see if I could spot Craig anywhere in the tree. I stood up and proceeded to walk over to the tree to see if I could get a better look. "Craig? Craig!" I yelled up again.

Suddenly, I felt a very painful yet intense tingling sensation in my back. It felt like someone had punched me hard right on my spine. Next thing I knew I felt a strange sensation. It was like a cold wind that was sweeping through my body. I fell to my knees and the next thing I remember, I saw a pool of blood. My blood. When I looked around, I saw Ahkmenrah dropping a beautiful necklace with gold, blue beading, and blue stones as he and Craig rushing towards me. I could feel myself slowly starting to lose consciousness. I felt Ahkmenrah scoop me up in his arms and I could barely see Craig running out of the courtyard. "Ahk..men..rah…" I tried to say as I could feel my entire body start to shake as my organs started to shut down. "I'm here! Stay with me my love! Please! Stay with me! I don't want to lose you! " I heard him plead as he held me tighter. I could see the tears starting to run down his face. I slowly put my shaking hand on his face and gently wiped away a tear. "Ahk..men...rah.. I… I.. Love… You…" I barely said as I was gasping for air. I felt my organs shut down completely as I felt my body go lifeless in his arms. After that, I felt nothing.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Mourning

It had been three months since Queen Irissa was killed. All of Egypt was devastated when they found out their beloved queen was no longer walking amongst them and had moved on into the afterlife. Although, no one was as devastated about her death as King Ahkmenrah. To prevent her from being disturbed in the afterlife, King Ahkmenrah had her buried in a secret location in the tomb where only he knew where it was and how to gain access to it. On her burial day, King Ahkmenrah ordered the servants, guards and Craig to wait outside and be on the lookout for anyone who dared to try to enter so that no one would find out where she was buried and how to gain access to it. Once he made sure everyone that was in attendance were having fun and distracted, he snuck inside the tomb entered the secret room as she was being placed down. After the servants left, he went over to the glass display that surrounded the sarcophagus that his beloved Irissa was in. After looking at it and admiring all of the details, Ahkmenrah put a boquet of Calla Lilies hand on the glass. "I swear to you my love, when I find who did this to you, I will avenge you! I swear on my life that my vengeance will be swift and terrible and I promise you that they will know the meaning of the word fear when I crush them like the insects they are! Then I shall burn of what remains of them and their bodies and make them burn like tiny little scarabs baking in the Sinai!" he said darkly in anger. He took a deep breath as tears rolled down his face. "Goodbye my love." He then leaned down and kissed the glass over where her lips would be. Hours later, one of the guards left their post and went to the outside of the secret door to try and make sure their king was still okay. "My king, the ceremonial feast is over. Are you ready to depart now?" the guard him. "No. Go to the carriage. I will be out there as soon as I am ready" he said coldly as he kept his gaze on the entrance to her area of the tomb. "Yes my king." the servant said meekly before he left. Once he was sure that the guard was gone, he walked over to the secret door and pushed on the secret brick that opened the door to exit where his beloved Irissa was hidden. He then left the secret room and watched the door close behind him. After they left the tomb, they went back to the palace and continued on with the day as usual. Ahkmenrah attended to his duties while Craig joined him.

The next day, when he finally got a break from his royal duties, Ahkmenrah would spend it in what was his and his beloved's room pacing back and forth while trying to figure out who killed his beloved, while Craig would wander the castle. While wandering the castle looking for his favorite imported fried dough balls, Craig saw a familiar figure in the kitchen. The figure had his back turned and all that Craig could see was the figure opening a small vial of powder, putting it into a drinking glass full of liquid and then stirring it. The figure then turned around to reveal that it was no one other than Ahkmenrah's jealous older brother, Kahmunrah. Before he could see him, Craig quickly hid behind a potted plant in the kitchen. Craig then watched Kahmunrah leave the kitchen with the glass and walk away. After Kahmunrah was out of the kitchen, Craig decided to follow him. Kahmunrah then walked to where Ahkmenrah was and entered the room. Looking through the small holes he had cut in secret, he peered through them and into the room. "So terribly sorry to hear about your loss baby brother" Kahmunrah said as he entered the room. "I don't need your sympathy Kahmunrah. What are you doing here anyways?" Ahkmenrah said as he snapped at him out of grief. "Do calm down brother. All of this will be soon be over in no time. Drink this. It will make you feel better." Kahmunrah said to Ahkmenrah as he handed him the glass. "Why are you suddenly being so nice to me?" Ahkmenrah asked him. "Now now dear brother. No need to get suspicious. When I was at sea, I had heard about what had happened to Iris and I figured you could use some company." Kahmunrah replied to him. "Now come, drink that. It will make you feel better" Kahmunrah said as he nudged the glass in Ahkmenrah's hand towards his lips. "I am not sure Kahmunrah. You have never been this nice to me before" Ahkmenrah said as he put the cup down on the table near the window. "It made mother and father feel better! After drinking it, they decided to take a long nap to try and help with the recovery process. And now they are sailing on the Nile to North Egypt to visit the rulers there and help them recover!" Kahmunrah said as he picked up the glass and handed it to Ahkmenrah. Ahkmenrah then went to go put the glass between his lips when he faintly heard a familiar voice call out. "No! Ahkie! Don't drink it!" Ahkmenrah could barely hear what the voice had said but he could almost make out whose voice it was. "Craig?" Ahkmenrah said out loud as he tried to figure out where the voice was coming from. Just as Ahkmenrah was about to put the glass down again, Kahmunrah grabbed ahold of his hands and made him drink every last drop of what was in the cup. After everything in the cup was gone, Kahmunrah smiled evilly. "Feel any better brother?" Kahmunrah said coldly. "A little." Ahkmenrah replied as his eyes begun to close and he let out a long yawn. "Dear brother, you look exhausted! Perhaps you should call it a night?" Kahmunrah said as he helped Ahkmenrah over to his bed. After Ahkmenrah settled into bed, Kahmunrah took off Ahkmenrah's crown and placed it on the table near the bed. A while later, Ahkmenrah was sound asleep. "Perfect!" Kahmunrah said as he took out the knife that was in the drawer. "Oh, look at this. _To my beloved Irissia. May this protect you from those who dare to try to hurt you._" Kahmunrah said as he read off the tag that was attached to the knife. After removing the tag, got ready to stab Ahkmenrah while he was sleeping. Before he could shove the knife through his heart, Ahkmenrah suddenly gasped for air and then let out a sharp exhale before he went lifeless. "Well that was easy!" Kahmunrah said as he put the knife in his pocket. "Help! Help!" Kahmunrah yelled out the doorway. "The king is dead! My brother is dead!" He yelled out again unsympathetically. When the doors burst open, guards ran into the room to see if what Kahmunrah had said was true. After the guards entered the room, the high priest came rushing in and went to Ahkmenrah's side. After trying to feel for a pulse, the priest's head fell and when he looked up, he just shook his head. Servants then came into the room with a white sheet and a gurney. The guards then helped the servants lift the body and carried it to the embalming chamber of the temple. Another three months had passed since the death of Egypt's beloved King Ahkmenrah. He was buried in the tomb in front of his tablet. After he was buried, Kahmunrah took the throne and was named pharaoh since there was no one else to take the throne that was of royal birth. Months had passed the the bodies of the old rulers, Merenkahere and his wife Shepseheret were found. Another three months later, they were buried beside their son Ahkmenrah. Before they were placed in the tomb, Kahmunrah ordered for all of the outermost parts on his brother's and parent's sarcophagus and coffins to be sealed and locked up tight with no questions asked. When his demands were met, the tomb was sealed and Kahmunrah went back to the palace as if nothing had ever happened.

One night while snooping around the palace, Craig overhears Kahmunrah talking to someone. He hid around a column that was outside of the door and leaned in to listen. "I can't believe it was _THAT _easy!" He heard him say. "You're telling me! I snuck up behind her and stabbed her right in the back! She never even knew that it was me! For all the guards and the people think, it was your baby brother's so called best friend that killed her and then him!" He heard another voice say. He peered through the hole in the door and saw Kahmunrah with Sharifa. Hearing their confessions, Craig realized that the powder that was in Ahkmenrah's drink was a very deadly poison that Kahmunrah used to kill Ahkmenrah and that Sharifa was the one that killed Iris. Craig then quietly snuck out of hiding and ran towards where the guards, the royal priest and the royal advisor were. "I know who killed King Ahkmenrah and Queen Irissia! It was…" Craig yelled while he ran to try to get their attention. Before he could get to the high priest and the others, he felt someone hit him hard on the back of the head and he was knocked unconscious. Hours later,when he woke up he noticed that he was somewhere that was dark and very unfamiliar."What? Where am I?" Craig said confused. "Ohh look! Fried dough balls!" he said as he noticed a large platter of fried dough balls on a table across from him. As he tried reaching out for the platter, he noticed that he could not move his arms or legs. Suddenly two figures came out of the shadows. "So you found out the truth didn't you?" Sharifa asked him as she held a lit torch. "I guess now that you know the truth, we are going to have to make sure that you are 'taken care of'!" Kahmunrah said as he held up an unlit torch. "Oh well for starters, you can hand me that tray of fried dough balls!" Craig said enthusiastically. "Not like that!" Kahmunrah shouted at him as he threw the unlit torch on the ground. "Well wait, where am I?" Craig asked again. "You are in the servant quarters of the tomb. We can't have someone like you running around and telling everyone the truth!" Sharifa replied to him before she threw down the lit torch. After Kahmunrah added some more pieces of wood to the chair that Craig was tied to, his entire body caught on fire and was severely burnt to death. After Kahmunrah made sure he was dead, he had his servant come in with some embalming workers from the temple so that they could start the mummification process. After the process was done and he was wrapped, he was placed in a wooden coffin and then sealed away in the tomb.

While Kahmunrah ruled over Egypt, he was known to be very cruel and violent. The people of Egypt hated and feared him. After years of ruling in tyranny, he was eventually killed and his body was lost at sea. Since he was the last blood heir, Prince Horusaha of the North took the throne and ruled just as how his sister had. And with a kind heart and an extended open hand, he was well respected and generally well liked. However he knew that he was and will never be as beloved as his sister was when she ruled.

Many decades later, the tomb of Ahkmenrah was discovered. While his parents got shipped off to London to be put on display at the British Museum, Ahkmenrah and his tablet got shipped off to Cambridge University to be put on display in the Egyptology Department. After eighteen years of being on display at Cambridge, Ahkmenrah and his tablet then were shipped off to New York to become a permanent exhibit of the Museum of Natural History. After archaeologists explored more of the tomb, they discovered the secret burial chambers of Irissia. She, along with the other artifacts and Craig were then shipped off to Cambridge University to be put on display in the Egyptology Department.

End of Part 1


	11. Chapter 11

Part 2 Chapter 1: Mysterious Box

It was another beautiful sunset in the museum was bigger and busier than ever! Because of all of the new exhibits, Larry had returned as the part time night guard. It was after hours and all the exhibits were brought to life just as they do every night. Larry and and Tilly began to make their rounds to let everyone out for the night. "I'll let the guys in the Egyptian Exhibits, Jed, and Octavius out while you do the neanderthals, pilgrims, and the others." Larry said. "You got is boss man!" Tilly said happily. She then made her way towards the neanderthals to start her part of the nightly rounds. "Okay people look alive!" Dr McPhee said as he walked into the main part of the museum. "Or just keep doing what you are already doing." He said as he looked around and noticed everyone already wandering the museum. "Ah Larry, there you are!" he said as he approached Larry. "Everything okay Dr. McPhee?" Larry asked. "No! Everything is not ok! We are getting in a new shipment of more exhibits throughout the week and I want you to make sure they adjust properly when they wake up. I don't want any of them wrecking my museum and causing any damage of any kind to anything!" Dr McPhee said to Larry and Tilly as he fixed his tie.

The next morning, the museum received in a large shipment of wax figures of various people throughout history, famous athletes and fairytales. Larry and Tilly had returned for their night guard shift. After they got to the museum before sunset, Larry and Tilly moved the boxes into the main part of the museum. "New people in 5,4,3,2,1!" Tilly said as she and Larry moved back to allow the new arrivals space. A large group of humans and animals exited their shipping units. "Hi! I'm Larry and this is Tilly" he started as he motind to the blonde beside him. "Hi" she said with a wave. Larry then brought out some of the others to show the new arrivals to their exhibits. "And finally. Elaine. You will be escorted by… Ah! Lancelot" Larry said as he read off of the list. A woman with pale skin and long wavy blonde hair stepped forward. "Lancelot?" Elaine inquired. "Ah! Lady Elaine! How um… delightful to see you again!" Lancelot said carefully. Elaine lowered her head as she approached the male. She then raised one of her arms and Lancelot prepared to kiss her hand when she suddenly brought her hand back and slapped him hard across the face. She then lifted her head and looked up at him with tears streaming down her pale face. Lancelot put a hand to his cheek that Elaine slapped.

"What's going on? Why are you crying? And why did you slap him?" Tilly asked confused. Lancelot held up a hand, signaling her to be quiet. "How dare you!" Elaine roared. "How dare I?! How dare you! You tricked me into sleeping with you! Twice!" Lancelot roared. "I was already punished! You were going to kill me!" She shouted. "But I didn't!" he responded. "Because I was with child. And not just any child! Your child! And instead of killing me, you kissed me and the second time after I gave birth to your child, you ignored me! All I wanted was some affection from the man that I loved, who I thought loved me back! And when Guinevere found us in bed together, she dumped you and instead of you FINALLY leaving her to be with her husband, you went mad, got naked, jumped out of a window, and ran away!" She rebutled. "I think it's about time that someone stepped in" Larry commented. "Worry not Lawrence. I'll get things under control!" Teddy said confidently. He then approached the couple and got in between them. "My dear, do you love this man?" Teddy asked Elaine. "Eons ago I would have said yes. But now" she said as she looked straight at Lancelot. "Now, I say no" she said seriously. "Harsh." Tilly commented quietly. "Lancelot, do you love that woman" Teddy asked. "No. She is not my Guinevere!" Lancelot responded.

Elaine stared at him coldly before she turned to face Larry and Tilly. "If you wouldn't mind, I would like to go to my new exhibit now" Elaine said. "Oh! Sure. Tilly can you please show her to where she is supposed to go?" Larry asked. "Let's go girlfriend" Tilly said as she had Elaine follow her. "Yeah so like I am so glad that my boyfriend is not like that!" Tilly said as she told Elaine all about Laa.

While walking past the Egypt exhibit, Tilly noticed Ahkmenrah sitting alone on top his sarcophagus holding and playing with a box while he had his crown next to him on the floor. "Who is that?" Elaine asked. "That's King Ahkmenrah. His tablet brings everything in here to life!" Tilly explained as she pointed to the tablet on the wall behind him. Elaine left Tilly's side and approached him. "Hello" she said softly. "Oh. Hello. I am King Ahkmenrah. Who might you be?" He asked as he hid the box behind him. "I am Lady Elaine of Corbenic. How do you do?" she asked. "I am well. How do you do?" He asked her as he carefully slid off of the top. He then picked up his crown off of the floor and put it onto his head. "I am well thank you." she responded.

"What you got there?" Tilly asked the young king as he tried to hide the small box behind him. "What? This? It's nothing." He replied as he put the box down on top of where he was just sitting. "You seem upset? Would you mind if I ask why?" Elaine asked worriedly. "Hey guys, everyone is all settled in and we got your booth all set up. What's with the box Ahk?" Larry asked as he came into the exhibit and noticed the box that Ahkmenrah was holding. Ahkmenrah then started to carefully open the box. "This box holds very special memories for me." He said as he pulled out a smaller box out of the box. He then set the box that it was stored in down onto the top of his sarcophagus and started to open the smaller box. "What is it?!" Tilly asked impatiently. Ahkmenrah then opened the smaller box all the way and held out a gold embroidered ring. "A ring?" Tilly commented. "Not just any ring. This ring was my original wedding ring." Ahkmenrah said as he admired all of the small details that had been saved from it. "Wedding ring? I never knew that you were married." Larry asked Ahkmenrah confused. "Yes. She was the love of my life. And after she moved on into the afterlife, I had her hidden away in my tomb so that no one would disturb her in the afterlife. Since I was unable to protect her that well when she was alive, it was my way of protecting her in the afterlife. Afterall, it was because of me that she died." Ahkmenrah explained as he looked down at the ring and let out a sigh. Elaine put a hand over where her heart was. "How did she die?" Tilly asked. "No one knew. All I know is that I went to go give her an anniversary gift that I had made for her and after I came back, she was dying. A few seconds later, she died in my arms ."Ahkmenrah explained. "From the sounds of it, her death wasn't your fault. It's very romantic that you want to protect her in the afterlife. I wish Lancelot would have been like that with me" Elaine said. "I made a vow to her on our wedding day that I would always protect her no matter what. And I never intended on breaking that promise!" Ahkmenrah replied as he started to tear up. Elaine gently put a hand on Ahkmenrah's back and she slowly rubbed his back. "There there. A person can only do so much" Elaine said soothingly. "I appreciate your concern but either way, the past is the past and I know that I will never get to see her again." He said as he walked towards his tablet. "Life is too short to focus on the past. Let us go and have fun tonight." Ahkmenrah said as he walked towards the archway leading to the main part of the museum. Tilly, Elaine and Larry then walked out behind him to join the party. That night was filled with laughter, light, music and everyone's company.


	12. Chapter 12

Part 2 Chapter 2: A Lost Love

The next night, Larry decided to take his son Nick with him to the museum. After Tilly arrived, the three of them went around the museum like usual and opened all of the exhibits for everyone. After sunset, Ahkmenrah's tablet brought everyone back to life for the night just like always. Everyone came out of their exhibits and roamed the museum. "Hey Lancelot, are you good talking to ladies and impressing her parents?" Nick asked Lancelot. "I would say I am. Why do you ask young Nick?" Lancelot asked him. 'Well, there is this girl from my school and she invited me and my dad to have brunch with her and her parents tomorrow and I need some advice. I really like her and I think she may like me and I really want some advice and ideas so I make a good impression on her and her parents." Nick said worriedly. "Alright. Here is what you need to do. First, you need to slay a dragon. Next, acquire the finest horses to present to her" Lancelot started to say before Elaine interrupted him.

Overhearing their conversation and Lancelot's terrible dating advice, Elaine scoffed. "You are seriously taking advice from a guy who wanted a married woman?! You are better off taking advice from someone who knows more about being a true gentleman." She interrupted Lancelot. She then paused to think. "What about Ahkmenrah? He had a wife and he seems like he would know a thing or two. I am sure he must have some ideas!" Nick, Lancelot and Elaine then walked to the Egypt exhibit where Ahkmenrah was standing near his tablet.

They walked in and past the guards. "Hey Ahkmenrah." Nick said to him as they walked in. "Nick, Elaine, Lancelot, how nice to see you. What brings you here tonight?" Ahkmenrah asked them as he turned around to greet them. "So Ahk, Elaine tells me that you were once married. Tell me about your wife." Nick said to Ahkmenrah. "My wife?Why do you want to know so much about her?" Ahkmenrah asked him. Nick then explained the situation as Ahkmenrah listened carefully. "I see. Have a seat." Ahkmenrah said as he motioned for them to sit down on the floor. "Well for starters, she was very kind and was always willing to lend a hand to those in need. And she was a true vision of beauty. Both inside and out. Especially on our wedding day. I remember before we were married, we used to go horseback riding at sunset around the palace and city or we would go swimming and play in the water, or on some nights, we would go to the Nile and sit in our favorite spot by the water and just enjoy being in each other's company. Or on the rare occasion that we didn't feel like going out of the palace, we would lay down on the couch or on our bed in our room and just cuddle and talk." Ahkmenrah said to Nick as he stared at the walls. "Okay so, horseback riding, swimming, sitting by the water and talking. What else did you two do?" Nick asked as he was trying to remember what Ahkmenrah had just said.

"How did you guys meet?" Nick asked. "Why do you want to know that?" Ahkmenrah asked them. "Well there girl at my school, she's in my History class and she is super into romance and stuff like that and I want to impress her by talking about that stuff." Nick explained. "I see." Ahkmenrah said to him. "Well, we met when we were very young. I was eight and she was seven I believe. My brother and I were being taught and quizzed about the Nile from our teacher and she was picking papyrus reeds and checking the fish traps in the Nile for some of the villagers. As my brother and I were following our teacher, I saw her fall into the river out of the corner of my eye. Since our lesson and quiz were over, I snuck away from them to see if she was alright. When went over to see if she was ok, I noticed that she was laughing when she tried to stand up. When I asked her why she was laughing after falling into the river, she just smiled at me and told me that it was because the little fish were nibbling at her feet. When I reached my hand out for her to try to help her stand up, she pulled me into the river and we started playing right there in the river. She would splash me and then I would splash her. And for once in my life, I felt like I had someone that I could call friend. Of course I had Craig, but that was about it." Ahkmenrah explained. "So what happened after that?" Elaine asked him. "Well after that, I heard my teacher looking for me and she looked over to her side of the river and tried to run off. I asked her if I would ever see her again. And that is when she came up with an idea. Each time we were at the river looking for each other, we would leave a note in a specific bottle that we passed back and forth. It had a rock tied to the bottom and a papyrus reed tied to the top. So when we were done reading the note that the other person left and after writing a reply with our own note, we would toss it in a specific location in the Nile. That went on for ten years." Ahkmenrah added to the story "Then what? When did you see her again?" Nick asked him. "Well, at the time, neither of us knew who we really were. So when my father told me that my brother or I was arranged to marry the princess from the North, I knew that I had to see her again. So, when it was my turn to reply, I asked to see her again and told her to meet me in three days after dark at the spot where we met. Three days passed and I was finally able to see her again. After she arrived, I gave her a bracelet so she would always remember me and I made her promise that she would never take it off." Ahkmenrah said as he rubbed his arm. As he was telling the story, more people came in and sat down to listen. "The next day, my brother and I were introduced to the princess and her parents. After she greeted my brother and I, it was in that moment that I knew that she was the lady from the Nile. After that, we all had a glorious feast and after that, both of our parents left the room and my brother and I were then escorted to the room that was prepared for the three of us. Along the way, my brother got distracted and left me to walk into the room alone. After a few minutes of me being alone, she entered the room and she decided to sit across from me. She didn't realize who I really was at first, but the moment I first saw her, I knew who she was. After she sat down, I took off my deshret and then she realized who I really was. After my brother and I got to spend some time with her, our parents summoned us back to the throne room and after we were escorted there, they announced that I was the one that was going to be the one to marry 'the princess' as they put it" Ahkmenrah said as smiled happily. "Well don't stop there! What happened next?" Tilly exclaimed. "Well after that, we got to spend some more time alone together and just fell deeper and deeper in love with each other. Some time later, we ended up getting into a fight over a misunderstanding caused by my oldest friend Craig that almost caused us to call off the wedding. However, we eventually came to an understanding and made up. And after that, everything was great. We would wake up together, spend most of our day together and then she would fall asleep in my arms at night." Ahkmenrah continued. "Any free time that we had, we spent it together." He finished saying. "So what other kind of things did you do with her?" Nick asked him as he took out his phone for notes. "Other than talking walks around the palace and city, going horseback riding and watching the sunset, we enjoyed reading together and she would often read to the young children at the school." Ahkmenrah said as he tried to remember everything they did together. "She sounds like she was an amazing person" Nick said. "She was indeed. She was and still is love of my life" Ahkmenrah said."I miss her more and more everyday." He said with a sigh as he rubbed the engravings on the ring that he had. After Ahkmenrah turned around to put the box down somewhere safe, everyone looked at each other sadly before they all nodded in agreement with each other. "Hey guys, I hate to be _that _guy but, the sun is about to rise so we have to get you guys back to your exhibits." Larry said as he stood up and ushered everyone else out of the exhibit.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 3: Caimbridge

That next day, Nick spent almost the entire day in his room at Larry and Tilly's apartment. He was currently on his computer. He looked everywhere online while Larry and Tilly looked in every book about Ancient Egypt and the rulers at the library. Nick was in the middle of reading an article about famous ancient Egyptian females when he heard his phone ring. "Hey Dad. How are you and Tilly doing?" Nick asked after he answered his phone. "We made some progress. We ended up running into Cecil and we asked him about what he knew. Apparently when Ahk left Cambridge, Cecil's father and his crew went back to the tomb and found more artifacts. After they found them, they were shipped off to Cambridge so that the museum in New York could get Ahk, his tablet and other artifacts" Larry explained. "What did you find about Irissa?" Nick asked "No one knew who the mysterious mummy was. All they knew is that it was a female. Maybe it was her" Larry replied. "I'll talk to Dr. McPhee tonight and see if he can make some phone calls to find out more information. But for now, we need to head over the museum. It's almost sunset. We will meet you there" Larry added before he hung up the phone.

A few minutes later, Nick, Tilly and Larry arrived at the museum just before sunset. "You are rather early tonight" Dr. McPhee said to Larry and Tilly as he walked out of his office. "Oh hey Dr. McPhee, just the person we were looking for!" Tilly said as she pulled him into the center of the museum. "Listen, the Ahkmenrah exhibit is not finished" Tilly said to Dr. McPhee. "Not finished? What do you mean? We have the tablet, him, his parents and other artifacts from his tomb! We even the twenty something foot tall guards! What else could there be?!" Dr. McPhee exclaimed in confusion. "Ahkmenrah had a wife" Tilly said as she motioned to her ring finger. "We need your help to find her and see about getting her here" Larry added. "Why should I? It probably doesn't matter!" Dr. McPhee exclaimed. "Well think of it this way, you will be probably one of the ONLY people to have a complete set of artifacts from the same tomb!" Nick said as he tried to convince Dr. McPhee to help them. "That is a good point. Alright, you can count me in! I'll see what I can do" Dr. McPhee said before he walked back into his office to make his phone calls. "Okay everyone, you know what to do!" Larry said before the three of them split up. Larry went to go release Ahkmenrah and his parents, While Tilly went to release the neanderthals, animals and pilgrims, and Nick went to open up the miniature exhibit to release Jed and Octavius. Once everyone was awake, Nick, Larry and Tilly were called into Dr. McPhee's office. "I have good news and bad news" Dr. McPhee said to them. "Good news is that I found where the 'unknown and mysterious female mummy' is. Bad news, the mummy along with the other artifacts found may be shipped off to various other places very soon." He said as he sat back in his chair. "Well, where is she?"Larry asked. "Cambridge University. However, they are shipping off their mummies and other artifacts and replacing them with wax figures" Dr. McPhee explained to them. "Lucky for us, I know the person in charge of their Egyptology Department and gave her a call. After talking to her for a while, she said that I and by that I mean you three, can go there and collect whatever remains of what was supposed to get packed up and shipped out later in the week." Dr. McPhee added as he slid Larry and Tilly a list on his desk. "There was one condition however. You must get it done by the morning of the next day or else. So you have until tomorrow night to get everything and get out of there swiftly. The guard there already knows of your arrival and will be expecting you" Dr. McPhee told them. "I want you to do it and do it as quickly as possible!" Dr. McPhee ordered.

That night, Larry, Tilly and Nick went over the list and devised a plan using a map of Cambridge that Nick printed out from the internet. " So, we need all of the help we can get. When we get there, Nick, you take Ahk, Laa, Lancelot, Atilla, and Elaine. " Larry said as he started to go over their plan."Can Dexter and Able come along?" Elaine asked as she walked into the break room while petting Dexter. Able then entered the room and climbed up onto her shoulder and Elaine kissed her head. "Totally!" Tilly said enthusiastically. "So, what's the master plan?" Elaine asked. "Well, after we get there early tomorrow morning, you, Ahk, his tablet, Lancelot and Atilla will be waiting for us on the inside. Since the door locks from the inside, once you and the other guys wake up, you can let us in" Larry said as he started to explain their plan to her. "I don't mean to be prissy, but you have me on a team with Lancelot the Thick-headed knight?!" Elaine said slightly angry. "We placed you with them so that they will have a level headed leader. Since we want to keep Teddy and Sacagawea together, we figured you were the best person for the job" Larry said as he tried to convince her to go along with their plan. " Besides, someone has to keep Lancelot in check while also showing him how awesome you are! Let him see what he's missing and it'll be his loss and he's gonna feel so bad and I bet that soon he'll be begging on his knees to get you back" Tilly said. "That is very true. Dextie, you can hit Lancelot as many times as you would like" Elaine cooed to Dexter. "So after you, Laa Dexter, Able, Ahk, Lancelot and Atilla, let us in and open up the loading dock, Tilly and I will back the truck in and have Ahk, Jedediah, Octavius, Sacajawea and Teddy get out and then you can help us set up the empty boxes." Larry explained. "After we get all of the empty boxes set up and opened, we can start grabbing the things on this list. After we get the small stuff, we can gather anyone that is supposed to come with us and bring them to the boxes." Larry finished explaining. "Sound like a plan?" Larry asked Tilly, Nick, Elaine, Dexter and Able. "Sounds like a plan Larry man!" Tilly said as she saluted him. After gathering everyone but Ahkmenrah up, Larry explained the plan and told them not to tell Ahkmenrah about where they are going and why. "All he needs to know is that we need him and his tablet and that we are bringing back some things for most of the exhibits here." Nick explained to them.

Early the next morning, Larry dropped off a large box containing Laa, Dexter, Able, Elaine, Lancelot, Atilla and Ahkmenrah with his tablet to Cambridge University. Later that night as the sun was setting, Larry, Tilly and Nick drove around to the back entrance that was unlocked. "Everyone ready and remember the plan?" Larry asked. "Got it all up here!" Tilly said as she pointed to her head. As the sun finally set, the tablet glowed and brought everyone to life. As Larry was backing the truck in, Nick was waiting by the back door to be let in. When Elaine opened the door for Nick, Lancelot and Atilla opened the loading dock door and Larry backed the truck in. After Larry put the truck in park, Nick opened the back doors of the truck to let everyone out. "Everyone okay?" Tilly asked as she looked over at Laa. Everyone nodded and Larry scanned the group to make sure that everyone was accounted for. "Where are we Larry?" Ahkmenrah asked as he looked around confused. "We are at a school. They are getting rid of some of their artifacts and exhibits and they said that before the ship them out to different places, we can have our pick of what we want. Dr. McPhee gave us a list and we have to get them by tomorrow morning." Larry said as he held up a piece of paper. After grabbing little things like fake food, fake plants and trees, some medieval weapons and various other things, it was time to grab the big artifacts. Atilla, Lancelot and Laa grabbed the big and heavy statues while everyone else grabbed the small statues and busts of famous heads. As the statues and objects were placed in their boxes, Larry was marking them off on the piece of paper. "Looks like we still have some time left before sunrise, wanna see what else we can get?" Nick asked Larry and Tilly. "I say we do it! Let's go!" Tilly said as she and Laa walked off.

Once everyone was inside the main part of the building, they began to search for Cambridge's Egyptology Department. "This place looks oddly familiar. If I remember correctly, the Egyptology department should be down this hall." Ahkmenrah said as he lead everyone down a long hallway. While they were walking down the hall, they picked up a few objects that the group had wanted. As they kept walking, they felt as if someone was following them and watching their every move from the shadows.


	14. Chapter 14

Part 2 Chapter 4: Reunited

"Seize them" a voice ordered. Suddenly, they were surrounded by a gang of men in fedoras. "What is going on?" Nick asked out loud. "Finally, we have a moment to speak to you." a figure said as it stepped out from the shadows. "He looks like a skinnier version of The Godfather." Nick commented quietly to his father. "Ma cherie, I'm going to make you an offer that you can not refuse. I am going to let your friends go. And in exchange, you will be the love of my life!" The godfather statue said to Elaine. He then took ahold of her hand and kissed it. Lancelot glared at him as he unsheathed his sword and pointed it at the Godfather statue. "I would tread lightly if I were you. This woman happens to be my wife!" Lancelot said threateningly. "Really now? I don't see a ring on this delicate finger. Besides, I know your story Lancelot. You preferred a married woman over the perfect angel that you had. Everything she did was out of love and you were a fool to take her for granted" The Godfather statue said. Elaine scoffed and pushed Lancelot's sword aside.

Suddenly,they see a mummy push himself in between the two men guarding the room and walked in to approach the group. "Hello beautiful lady!" Craig said to Elaine as he pushed The Godfather statue away from Elaine. He then took her hand and kissed it. Lancelot let out a low growl of disapproval and Elaine curtsied. 'Greetings" she said. "Ahkie? Ahkie Bear? Is that you?" The mummy asked in disbelief. "Oh no." Ahkmenrah said dreadingly. "Hello Craig." Ahkmenrah said to the mummy.

"What brings you here?!" Craig asked Ahkmenrah. "We are here to gather some things that came here from his tomb." Larry tried to explain to Craig. "Craig, do you know if there is anything else from my tomb here?" Ahkmenrah asked Craig. "Of course there is! Look at this!" Craig said as he held up a jewel encrusted jar. "I am literally taking your breath away" Craig said as he started to walk out of the room. "Wait, is that your actual lungs in there?" Tilly asked a bit disgusted. "Sure is!" Craig responded as he held the jar close to his chest. "Craig, do you know where the Egyptology Department is?" Larry asked. "Yeah, why?" Craig responded. "Can you please show us where it is?" Larry asked, slightly annoyed. "I could, but what is in it for me?" Craig asked as he eyed Ahkmenrah's crown and tablet. "You want to wear the crown and carry the tablet don't you?" Elaine asked. Craig nodded furiously and everyone looked at Ahkmenrah. Ahkmenrah then sighed heavily and rolled his eyes. "I'll tell you what Craig, if you show us where you got that jar from, I will let you wear my 'shiny hat' alright?" Ahkmenrah said to Craig. "And…" Craig said, urging Ahkmenrah to continue his proposition. "And I will let you carry my tablet until we get there." Ahkmenrah said as he took off his crown and held it out to Craig.

"And…" Craig said again. "And what?" Tilly asked. "Ahkie has to admit that I am the greatest broson in the whole wide universe forever and ever!" Craig said as he swayed his arms back and forth like a child. "What's a broson?" Elaine asked. "I'm pretty sure its the words bro and person combined." Nick explained. "How about _THIS _Craig, I will let you wear my 'shiny hat' and you can give my tablet to the pretty lady over there. I'm sure she likes shiny things" Ahkmenrah said as he handed Craig his crown and tablet. "Deal!" Craig said as he put Ahkmenrah's crown on and took his tablet. "For you pretty lady, I present a shiny magical thing of some sort. It does something and it's very shiny." Craig said as he handed the tablet to Elaine. "Why thank you my good sir. I do so love shiny things." Elaine said as she took the tablet from Craig. "Here, hold this." She said as she then handed the tablet to Larry who put it in Nick's backpack (without Craig noticing) for safekeeping. Before leaving the room, Craig turned to Ahkmenrah who was fixing his hair with his fingers.

After leaving the room with some empty boxes and Craig as their guide, (and making a lot of wrong turns and having to chase Craig to get him back on track), they somehow finally arrived at the Egyptology department. "Here we are my loyal subjects and Ahkie. Welcome to my Kingdom of Awesomeness!" Craig said as he tried to sound king-like while wearing Ahkmenrah's crown. "Are you impressed pretty lady?" Craig asked Elaine. "It's very nice and I do have a name you know, it's Elaine" Elaine said. Craig stared blankly at her. "I like pretty lady better" he said before he wandered off (again).

As they started to enter the area where the tomb was, they were stopped by large cat guards that were holding spears that were pointed at them.

"Hold on Ahkie bro. I got this. Ahem, alkhasu bi sadiq w 'ana yaeni aldarar." Craig said as he stepped forward. The guards then moved the tips of their spears closer to everyone's bodies. "Nice going Craig." Ahkmenrah said sarcastically while he rolled her eyes. "Thank you. I know! I'm awesome!" Craig said as everyone face palmed. Ahkmenrah then sighed and rolled his eyes again at Craig. "Allow me. 'Asdiqayiy wa'aeni 'anak la durra. atayna musalimin." Ahkmenrah said. The guards then moved their spears further away.

"Alhurras, daeahum yadhhabuna!" They heard a voice yell. The guards put down their weapons and walked out of the room. Just then, a figure came out from behind a wall. She was dressed in an elegant white dress with golden accessories, a gold bracelet on her left wrist and a ring on the finger of that hand. On top of her head, she wore a golden crownlike headdress. Ahkmenrah then froze in place staring at the woman that walked out. "Marhabaan habi**.**" Ahkmenrah said to her as they approached each other. They then embraced each other. "Marhabaan ya habibi. (Hello my darling.)" She said to Ahkmenrah as they embraced. "Laqad kan aledyd min 'aqmar mundh akhar marat ra'aytak fiha. Tabdin jamilat kay waqt madaa." Ahkmenrah said to her while they touched foreheads. "Shukraan lakum. 'ana saeid jiddaan liruyatak maratan 'ukhraa ya habibi**.**" She replied back to him. Before embracing each other once again.

"I don't mean to interrupt, but could you possibly speak English please?" Lancelot said. "What's wrong with them speaking their native language to each other? I think it's very romantic!" Elaine said as she crossed her arms. Ahkmenrah and the woman then looked at each other and smiled while they let out a small laugh. "My apologies my friends." Ahkmenrah said as he apologized to everyone."This is Larry, Tilly, Laa, Jedediah, Octavius, Dexter, Able, Sacajawea, Atilla, Nick, Lancelot, Elaine, and Teddy." Ahkmenrah said to her as he motioned to everyone. "Hello. I am Queen Irissia of the North and Egypt's radiant desert flower. But please, call me Iris." She said as she introduced herself. "It's a pleasure to meet you all." Iris said as she bowed her head to everyone. "Greetings Lady or shall I say, Queen Iris. It is a pleasure to meet you." Elaine said as she curtsied and bowed her head. "What brings you here my darling?" Iris asked Ahkmenrah as they held hands. "We came to collect some things for the museum in New York before they got distributed and shipped out." Ahkmenrah said to Iris. "And that includes you and everything here in this room." Tilly said as she motioned to everything in the room. Craig then put his arm around Ahkmenrah. "Ahkie bear. I'm going to make you an offer that you are not allowed to refuse! I am going to be by your side for the rest of your life!" Craig said as he tried to mock The Godfather statue's words from earlier. "See pretty lady? I can do it way better!" Craig gloated as he tried to impress her. Everyone heard Lancelot scoff. "What's wrong shiny guy? Got something in your throat?" Craig asked Lancelot. "That happens to be my wife that you are flirting with" Lancelot warned. "Really? She doesn't seem like she's that into you." Craig said. "Oooh shiny!" Craig exclaimed and he wandered off. Ahkmenrah held up three fingers and he began to count down. When Ahkmenrah got to one, Craig came back. "I got bored" he said as he rejoined the group.

Everyone then grabbed as much as they could carry and put them in the boxes. After filling everything up with as much as they could contain, Larry and Tilly sealed up the boxes (and with the guards to help), Atilla, Laa and Lancelot helped to move all of the boxes and loaded them into the truck. "Alright everyone. Good job! Time to get in." Larry said as he motioned for everyone get into large boxes. "Teddy, Octavius, Jedediah, Dexter, Able and Sacagawea get in that one. Atilla, Laa and Craig get in that one, Lancelot and Elaine in that other one and Ahk, you and her can go in that one." Larry said as he pointed to the boxes from Largest to medium sized. " Is there any way I can go in a different container?" Elaine asked. "Afraid not." Tilly said as she shook her head. Elaine then turned to Lancelot. " Don't get any ideas. I better not catch you trying to touch me" Elaine warned Lancelot. As everyone got into their assigned boxes, Lancelot noticed Ahkmenrah helping Iris into the large box. Lancelot then held out a hand to help Elaine into the box. Elaine scoffed and swatted his hand away as she climbed in. After Larry, Nick and Tilly loaded the boxes into the truck using a forklift, they locked the doors behind them and drove off. After arriving back to the museum in New York, they started to unload all of the boxes. Later that night, everyone came to life and the boxes were opened. Teddy helped Sacagawea out while Dexter and Able climbed out with Octavius and Jedediah on their backs. When Atilla opened the box from the inside, Atilla jumped out while Laa burst through all of the packing peanuts and went straight for Tilly. "Hey big guy" Tilly cooed as Laa hugged her and she hugged him back. Tilly giggled as she pulled a few packing peanuts out of Laa's hair. Laa then looked at her and then at the packing peanuts. Tilly handed him the packing peanuts and laughed as he gobbled them up. "Hold on Ahkie! Craigy bear is coming for you!" Craig called happily as he leaped out of the box and ran over to the one that Ahkmenrah and Iris were in. "Ahkie?" Craig said as he noticed that no one was in the box. "Oh no! I lost my Ahkie and his shiny hat!" Craig yelled as he rummaged through all of the packing peanuts. "Ahkie? Ahkie?!" Craig yelled again. As Craig was yelling for Ahkmenrah, Dexter heard laughter coming from the Egypt exhibit. He looked at Able and they snuck away to go check it out. Elaine noticed them walking away so she followed them. When she got past the guards, she saw Ahkmenrah, his parents and Iris hugging, laughing and crying together. Elaine took Dexter and Able in her arms and they hid behind a nearby column. Elaine smiled softly. She then spoke softly

"I'm glad you guys are happy"

Translations:

"alkhasu bi sadiq w 'ana yaeni aldarar. (mine honest and I am means damage )"

"'asdiqayiy wa'aeni 'anak la durra. atayna musalimin (My friends and I mean you no harm. We come in peace.)"

"alhurras , daeahum yadhhabuna! (Guards, let them go!)"

"marhabaan habi.(Hello my love.)"

"marhabaan ya habibi. (Hello my darling.)"

"laqad kan aledyd min 'aqmar mundh akhar marat ra'aytak fiha.(It has been many moons since I last saw you.)"

"tabdin jamilat kay waqt madaa (You look as beautiful as ever.)"

"shukraan lakum. 'ana saeid jiddaan liruyatak maratan 'ukhraa ya habibi. (Thank you. I am so happy to see you again my darling.)"


	15. Chapter 15

Part 2 Chapter 5: The Missing Piece

The next night, everyone in the museum was happy and having fun. While everyone was playing soccer, Tilly was telling the neanderthals some stories from her past, Teddy and Lancelot were talking with Larry about 'manly things', Merenkahere and Shepseheret were talking with Sacajawea and Atila about the Egyptian gods, Trixie and Rex were happily playing together and Craig was in the break room pigging out on the box of donuts.. Elaine wandered the museum and after a while, she came upon Ahkmenrah and Irissa who were in their exhibit together talking while holding hands and occasionally laughing and kissing.

Elaine sighed as she watched the way Ahkmenrah and Irissa embraced each other. "I'm sure Ahkmenrah would never cheat on her" she mumbled. She then walked away. She then saw Nick and Larry talking with Teddy. She absentmindedly put a hand on her stomach. "Oh Galahad, how I wish you were here" she said sadly. She then thought about all the good times that she and Lancelot had. She then shook her head. "He cheated remember?! He only wanted Guinevere, not you! He wanted a woman that was married to someone else rather than the woman that was not only married to him and gave him a son, but was in love with him and would do anything for him!" she exclaimed. "And I'm talking to myself. Great!" she groaned. "Elaine? Is that you?" Iris asked her from across the room. Elaine gasped in surprise. "Oh Iris, it's just you" Elaine responded as she calmed down. "Elaine, is everything alright?" Iris asked worriedly. She then left Ahkmenrah's side and walked over to Elaine. "Oh, it's… nothing" Elaine said as she absentmindedly put her hand on her stomach again. "Are you sure? Does your stomach hurt?" Iris asked her as she put her hand on her shoulder. "No. I was just remembering my time with my son Galahad. That's all" Elaine said. "Did you and Ahkmenrah ever have a child?" She asked Iris carefully. Iris took her hand and they walked out of the exhibit together. "You must swear that you will not tell anyone. Especially Ahkmenrah and his parents. Alright?" Iris said as she tried to gather the courage to tell Elaine the truth. "I swear on my life or may my body be set on fire and melt until I am nothing but a puddle of wax on the floor!" Elaine responded. Iris then took a deep breath. "To be perfectly honest with you, we were going to have a child. The night I was killed, I was going to tell him but obviously I never got the chance to tell him. And when my internal organs, they also removed our unborn child" Iris told her as she tried to hold back her tears. Elaine gasped in horror and held her friend close. "I know Ahkmenrah would have been a wonderful father" Iris smiled a little. "I know his parents would have been ecstatic about the news. Especially his mother. She would ask us every single time we saw her about when he and I were going to 'make an heir to the throne' and I know Ahkmenrah would have loved to have been a father" Iris said as she hugged Elaine back. As they hugged, Elaine tried to console Iris by gently rubbing her back. "At least the man who was the object of your affections never desired another man's wife even though you and him had a wondrous child together!" Elaine said gently. "At least you got to spend time with your child and watch him be raised" Iris said as she pulled out of Elaine's hug and started to walk away. Wait!" Elaine called out to Iris. "I'm sorry. I never meant to upset you in anyway" Elaine called as she caught up to Iris. "It's alright. I am the one that is overreacting to this situation. As long as Ahkmenrah and his parents don't find out then I suppose everything will be perfectly fine." Iris said as she hugged Elaine.

"You know, there is a way that we may be able to find your son." Iris said as she remembered something. "Come with me." Iris said as she walked off. She and Elaine then walked to Dr. McPhee's office. Iris then knocked on the door. "Doctor McPhee, do you have a moment?" Iris asked as she knocked gently on the door. "Yes. Of course. Come in." Dr. Mcphee said. As she opened the door, she and Elaine walked in to see Larry and Dr. Mcphee sitting and talking. "I am terribly sorry to interrupt you gentlemen." Iris said as Elaine shut the door. "Hey Elaine, Iris. Is everything ok? Is something wrong with Ahk or the tablet?" Larry said concerned. "Everything is fine Mr. Daily. Ahkmenrah and his tablet are both fine." Iris said as she and Elaine sat down. Elaine sat down in an empty chair next to Larry and Iris sat on Dr. Mcphee's desk. "We need to ask you something." Iris said as she looked over at Elaine. "Yah sure, what's up?" Larry asked as he leaned in to listen. "This morning before you left, I remember you say something about a medieval exhibit in Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in New Jersey shutting down. Is there any way you could find out if a person named Galahad is there?" Iris asked Dr. Mcphee. "Who is Galahad?" Larry asked. "My son." Elaine said as she replied to Larry. "Please Doctor McPhee?" Iris pleaded with him. "Oh alright. Since I quite enjoy a happy reunion, I shall see what I can do. But in return, I want you to teach me your ancient language and then how to speak hun. I am tired of always not knowing what the huns are saying to me and always getting frustrated with me and on top of that, I need a translator by my side when I talk to them. Not to mention how every single night, your guards always try to attack me when I go to check up on the exhibit." Dr. McPhee said as he looked at Iris and then on his computer. "We have a deal." Iris said as she and Dr. McPhee shook hands. "Thank you so much!" Elaine said estaticaly as she jumped out of her seat. "Shukraan jazilaan" Iris said as she and Elaine walked out. "Shakrun what?" Dr. McPhee said confused as he tried to repeat what she had just said. "Shukraan jazilaan. It means thank you very much." Iris said as she smiled before exiting the room. "Just wait until you hear her and Ahk talking to each other! They sound so elegant and only they know what each other is saying!" Tilly said as she tried to sit down on the desk, only to be pushed off by Dr. McPhee. "By the way, do any of you know why the doughnuts keep going missing. One moment there is a full box and the next, the entire box is empty!" Tilly said as she opted on sitting down in the open chair .

The next night, Dr. McPhee called Larry, Tilly, Irissa, and Elaine into his office. "Okay so, I have good news and I have bad news. Good news is, I found Galahat. Bad news is, he's in a wax museum two hours away that is closing in a few days for remodeling" he explained. "It's Galahad" Elaine said slightly angered. "Anyways, if you are going to do something then I suggest that you do it quickly" Dr. McPhee said. Elaine wrung her hands together and Irissa put a hand on her shoulder. Elaine looked to her friend with a worried look and Irissa squeezed her shoulder. "No need to worry Elaine" Irissa said reassuringly. "Elaine, I know what it's like to not be with your child for a huge part of his life. Believe me, I wish I could have given Nick a normal childhood with both of his parents in a house together, instead of me getting him on Wednesdays and every other weekend. As a father and your friend, I promise that we will do whatever it takes to get Galahad here safely" Larry said determinedly. Elaine started to tear up and she wiped away a tear. "Thank you so much Larry. You have no idea how much this means to me. I really appreciate your help. I just wish I could be alive during the day so I could help" Elaine said as she wiped away her tears. Larry awkwardly put an arm around her shoulders in a half hug. They then heard the sound of armor _'clanking'_ from the other side of the door. The door then swung open and everyone turned to look at who was entering the room. Lancelot stood in the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest. "I do hope that I'm not interrupting anything Dangly Bells" he said angrily as he glared at Larry. Larry looked to see that his arm was still around Elaine's shoulders. Larry quickly removed his arm and he heard Tilly sigh heavily. "Here we go again" she mumbled. "How dare you lay a hand on a woman that isn't yours!" Lancelot yelled. "It wasn't what it looked like" Larry said defensively as he took his arm off of Elaine's shoulder. Elaine got in front of Larry and she shoved Lancelot. "How dare you! I am not yours! You always wanted Guinevere! Even when I gave birth to your son you _still _wanted her!" Elaine yelled. Tilly sighed heavily again as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Okay… You and you" Tilly yelled as she pointed to Lancelot then to Elaine. "Corners. Now!" she yelled and Lancelot and Elaine went to separate corners in the room. Larry and Dr. McPhee stared at her in both shock and awe.

"What is going on in here?" Ahkmenrah said as he entered the room holding his tablet under one arm and Dexter on his other arm. "Is everything alright?" He asked as Able swung herself in and onto Elaine's shoulder. "Everything is fine darling just discussing the plans for tomorrow night" Iris said as Ahkmenrah took her hand and kissed it gently. "What is tomorrow night?" Lancelot asked snippingly. "I would tell you if you weren't such-" Elaine responded back to Lancelot angrily. "Okay you two. Knock it off! We all know what to do. So for now, let's just leave it here and go our separate ways for now." Larry interrupted as he checked his watch and she showed Tilly the time. "It's going to be sunrise soon. You guys go back to your exhibits and Tilly and I will fill you in tomorrow, okay?" Larry asked. "You two can move from the corners now. I want you two to walk back to your exhibit together peacefully and I don't want to hear a single word from either of you. Got it?" Tilly asked rhetorically. Lancelot and Elaine turned around to face her and they nodded. Tilly then took their hands and put them together. "Now go" she said as she pointed to the open fighting couple the left the room with everyone else. After everyone left to go back to their own exhibits, the sun rose and the museum was silent once again.


	16. Chapter 16

Part 2 Chapter 6: A Mother's Love

The next day before sunset, Larry, Nick and Tilly arrived at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in New Jersey. As they pulled up to the entrance gate, they were greeted by a young man holding a phone and wearing a blue and tan uniform with the word "Security" on it. Around his neck, there hung a lanyard with a picture and a name "Mark" on it. "Welcome to Madam Tutu's Wax Museum or whatever I guess. Pick up or delivery?" The guy said as he continued to stare at his phone screen. "Pick up" Larry said as he tried to show the young man his security badge. The young man then motioned for them to continue through the closed gate. "Can you open the gate please?" Tilly asked from the passenger side of the vehicle. "Ugg. Fine!" The young man said in a pessimistic tone as he let out a groan and then opened the gate. "Thanks so much Markl" Larry said before driving through the opened gate. After Larry drove around to the back of the building, Tilly and Nick got out to make sure that the coast was clear. After signaling to Larry that the coast was clear, Larry backed the truck up into the loading dock while Nick and Tilly kept watch. After the truck was safely parked and secured, Larry and Tilly unloaded the boxes that contained Elaine, Laa ,Lancelot,Irissa, Craig, Ahkmenrah and his tablet. Once the boxes were unloaded and the room was secured, Tilly and Larry nodded at each other. Larry got back in the truck and then drove the truck out of the gate while Nick and Tilly stayed behind to make sure no one would enter the room. After the guard left to go on his break, Nick snuck into the guard shack and opened the gate so Larry could drive the truck back in without being noticed. After parking the truck, Tilly let Nick and Larry back into the museum. After the sun had set, the box started to glow.

"Okay everyone! Tonight's the night! Everyone know what to do?" Larry asked as he and Tilly opened the top of the boxes to let everyone out. One by one, everyone stepped out of the box. After everyone was out of the box, they walked towards the door that lead into the museum. Laa reached for the door and tried to open it. "It wont open" Nick said as Laa continued to pull the door to try to open it. "Come on Laa, that's not going to work" Tilly said as she tried to get Laa away from the door. "Stay" Laa said as he put a hand on Tilly. After moving Tilly out of the way, Laa broke the small window on the door and tried to open it again. "Um Laa," Larry said as he pushed the door open. "Push Laa. Don't pull" Larry said as he showed Laa how to open the other door. "Let's go find my son!" Elaine said as she rushed out of the room and into the museum. After leaving the room to wander the museum, they saw what looked like the master control office."Dad look! If I can get in there, I can plug in my laptop and gain access to the system, I should be able to control which figures go with us" Nick said as he took out his laptop from his backpack. "Great idea Nikki! Everyone wait here" Larry said as he opened the door. "That night guard doesn't really do his job very well" Tilly remarked as Larry and Nick entered the now open room and plugged in his laptop. "Hey dad, look at this" Nick said as he motioned for Larry to come look at his computer screen. "According to this, the medieval figures are supposed to go to a museum in Canada and we are supposed to get the children's cartoon characters" Nick said confused. "Is there a way you can change it?" Larry asked his son as he put a hand on his shoulder. "I can try. It may take a few minutes. I will let you know when I finish changing the inventory" Nick said as he started to type away on his computer. "Good luck Nick. I know you can do it" Larry said to Nick as he tried to motivate him. "Thanks dad" Nick said as Larry left the room.

"According to this map, the medieval exhibit should be this way" Tilly said as she looked at the map that was standing in front of her. As they started to walk towards the exhibit, they heard a very loud noise. "What's that sound?" Tilly asked as she and Larry took their flashlights off of their belts to look around. "Don't worry Ahkie! I'll protect you!" Craig said as he jumped onto Ahkmenrah's back and wrapped his arms around Ahkmenrah's neck. Suddenly, Larry's phone lit up. "Guys, Nick got in! We can take what we want from the medieval exhibit" Larry said as he paraphrased what Nick had texted him. "Wait, I know that sound" Elaine said as she turned around the corner and ran towards the sound. "Elaine wait!" Larry yelled as he, Tilly, Laa, Irissa, Craig, and Ahkmenrah started to chase after her. "Let her go Dangly Bells! It's not worth it! Besides, she wouldn't listen anyway!" Lancealot yelled as he chased after Larry to stop him and the others. After everyone finally caught up to Elaine, they noticed that she was frozen in place and watching someone.

When they looked at what Elaine was staring at, they saw little kids playing. One child was a princess, another was a prince and the last child was a knight. "Are you alright Elaine?" Irissa asked her as she put her hand on Elaine's shoulder. "I-I can't believe it." Elaine said almost speechless. "Believe what?" Craig asked her as he leaned over Ahkmenrah's head. "Galahad" Elaine three children then stopped what they were doing and one of the little boys looked over at them. "Yes?" The little boy asked as he looked over at Elaine and the others. "Galahad!" Elaine replied happily with tears forming in her eyes. The blonde child looked at her for a moment before his eyes widened. "Mommy!" The boy cried he ran towards Elaine. She was quick to scoop her in his arms and hold him close to her. "Oh Galahad my dearest darling child" Elaine cried happily. "Mama" the child cried happily. "Everyone, this is the most noblest knight in the world, my son Galahad" Elaine said as she presented Galahad to everyone. Galahad waved and Tilly squealed in delight. "Galahad my precious treasure, this is, Laa ,Larry, Tilly ,Irissa, Ahkmenrah, and Craig" Elaine explained. Galahad waved happily and then he looked over at Lancelot. "Who's that mama?" Galahad asked. "Don't you know? That's your father" Tilly cooed at the little boy. Larry looked between Elaine and Lancelot. "Elaine can I talk to you for a minute?" Larry asked. Elaine nodded and she handed her son to Irissa. Once he was in her arms, Elaine kissed his head and she walked off with Larry. "Okay so, I know that you don't really like Lancelot. But, right now you need to let Lancelot spend time with Galahad. He is his father and he does have a right to see his son" Larry said once he and Elaine were alone.

Irissa then walked to where they were. "Elaine, you were blessed with this child and for his sake, be the family that Ahkmenrah and I never got to be. Surely there is something that you two can still bond over! Besides, Lancelot only has you right now. The _other _woman isn't here. So can you at least _try _to make up with him so you can finally be a family?" Irissa said as she tried to convince her to make up with Lancelot so that they could have a second chance at being a family. Elaine went silent and she lowered her head. "It would be useless anyway. He doesn't love me. I don't even know if there ever was a time when he truly loved me. His heart always belonged to Arthur's queen. I understand what you are trying to do and I appreciate it and I do want Galahad to have a loving family life as you say Lawrence. However, as I said, Lancelot does not love me and as Galahad's mother, I don't want him to be around Galahad. He can spend what is left tonight. After tonight Galahad will be under my care and Lancelot is not to be around him" Elaine said as he raided her head. Larry's watch_ 'beeped'_ softly and Larry looked at it. He then walked back to the others with Irissa and Elaine following behind. "Hey, we should probably go meet up with Nick and get you guys back to the museum before sunrise" Larry said as he ushered everyone towards an exit. "What happens at sunrise mommy?" Galahad asked Elaine. "Well, at sunrise, we all go to sleep. And at night after sunset, we all wake up and play!" Elaine told Galahad. "But shouldn't we sleep at night and play during the day?" Galahad asked Elaine confused. "It's not like that anymore. Since the museum closes at night, it's the only time when we get to play." Elaine explained.

After walking through the museum to the loading dock, Larry and Tilly opened the doors to see Nick waiting for them. "Hey guys. How did it go?" Nick asked as everyone entered the room. "It went good. Nick, this is Galahad." Larry said as he introduced Nick to Galahad. "Nice to meet you Galahad" Nick said as he crouched down to Galahad's level and held out his hand. "Hi mister" Galahad said happily as he shook Nick's larver hand with his smaller one.

When everyone was in their boxes, Larry, Tilly and Nick loaded up the boxes into the truck and drove off back to the museum. After a few hours of driving, they finally reached the museum. Once the truck was parked, Larry and Tilly got everyone unloaded and back to their exhibits. "Hey everyone!" Elaine yelled out to try to get everyone's attention. "I just wanted to say thank you for reuniting Galahad and I. I am eternally grateful and if there is anyway I can repay your kindness please don't hesitate to tell me" She said as everyone looked at her. "It's what we do!" Tilly said as she put an arm over her shoulder. "Yah Elaine, we prefer to keep families together so that everyone is happy" Larry said as he put his hand on Nick's shoulder. "Besides, the people love a completed exhibit! Ever since the Egypt exhibit got completed, we have been getting request after request of which exhibits should be completed. And the medieval exhibit was in second place" Dr. McPhee said as he walked out into the main part of the museum. "Now get back where you belong before sunrise. I don't want to carry you all the way to the medieval exhibit" Dr. McPhee warned playfully. Elaine laughed and she made her way the the medieval exhibit with Galahad. Everyone returned to their own exhibits and the museum was silent once again.


	17. Chapter 17

Part 2 Chapter 7: Rekindling Love

After the sun had set following day, the tablet began to glow and everyone was brought to life like usual. After making his daily rounds, Larry stopped by the medieval exhibit to check up on Lancelot, Elaine and Galahad. "Hey you guys doing okay?" Larry asked them. "Yes. We are fine" Elaine replied as she played with Galahad. Larry then pulled Lancelot aside after he noticed that Elaine talked to him before going to play with Galahad. "Hey Lance, so now that Galahad is back, what are you going to do?" Larry questioned. "Well, Elaine told me that she is feeling generous after last night and she is going to allow me to spend tonight with her and Galahad. After that, I'm not sure Dangly Bells" Lancelot said solemnly. "Well then, I'll let you go catch up with your son. And remember to always listen to your child and if I were you, I'd choose my words and actions carefully around Elaine. If you are behaving then she might let you spend more time with Galahad" Larry advised.

Lancelot nodded and he walked over to Elaine and Galahad. Elaine and Galahad were both seated on the ground watching Atilla as he and some of the other huns were telling stories with sock puppets. Lancelot sat down next to Galahad and he smiled when he heard his son and Elaine's laughter. "What's with the sock puppets?" he asked. "Lawrence's idea" Elaine said after she calmed down from laughing. Lancelot was surprised that she answered him and didn't use any harsh tones when she spoke. After the huns' show, everyone went back to doing what they wanted. "That was a funny show mama" Galahad said to Elaine as he looked up at her. "Yes it was" she agreed as she looked down at Galahad with a smile. Galahad smiled widely and he took Elaine and Lancelot's hands as he walked in the middle of them. "Mama? Papa? Can we go play now?" Galahad asked them as they started to walk away together. "Of course my son" Lancelot said as he looked down at him and smiled. Elaine led Galahad to where Able and Dexter were. Elaine held out an arm and Able perched on her arm. Galahad stared in wonder as Dexter perched on Elaine's other shoulder. "Galahad, this is Dexter and Able" Elaine said as she crouched down to Galahad's height. Galahad shyly raised his arm. "It's okay" Elaine said. Galahad nodded and he reached out to pet Able. Before his small hand could touch her fur, he paused. Able gently took Galahad's hand and put it on her head. Galahad then began to slowly pet her. Elaine smiled as she had an idea.

"Here, hold out your arm" Elaine said gently. Lancelot crouched down behind Galahad and he gently held out Galahad's arm. Elaine then motioned for Able to climb onto her son's arm. Galahad pat his shoulder for Able to climb onto. After Able looked over at Elaine and then at Galahad, Elaine nodded at her and she climbed onto Galahad's shoulder. Dexter took one of Galahad's hands and put it on his back. Elaine then let out a laugh. "It seems like someone's jealous" she commented as Galahad continued to pet Able. Elaine then stroked Dexter's back. "Awh. Is someone jealous?" she cooed. "I am not!" Lancelot retorted. Galahad looked at his father and laughed. "Silly daddy. Mama was talking to the monkey" he laughed. After walking to their exhibit, Trixie came barging in through the doors. "Don't let the monster hurt me mommy!" Galahad pleaded to Elaine as he grabbed onto her skirt tight. Lancelot quickly got in front of them and he pointed a finger at the floor. "Trixie! Sit!" Lancelot ordered. As soon as he gave his command, Trixie sat down in place and hung her head. "Trixie, behave." Lancelot ordered Trixie as he put one hand on his sword that was sheathed. "It's okay Galahad. Trixie won't hurt you. See? You can pet her if you want." Lancelot told Galahad as he put a hand on Trixie's nose. "Really?" Galahad asked in wonder. Lancelot nodded and he gently took Galahad's hand and placed it on her nose.

"Mommy look at me!" Galahad said excitedly as he looked at Elaine. Lancelot smiled and looked over at Elaine. "Hey Mommy, I think Able and Trixie like each other" Galahad said as he held Able out to Trixie. They were then startled when they heard loud footsteps coming towards them. Lancelot quickly unsheathed his sword and Rex came bursting into the room with Larry in running behind him. "There you are Trixie. We have been looking everywhere for you. Come on, it's time to get your bones polished. There will be a lot of schools coming here tomorrow" Larry said as he threw a rope over Trixie's neck and led her out of the room. Lancelot looked back at Galahad and he let out a sigh of relief. "Are you both alright?" he asked. Galahad started at him in awe. "That was so cool daddy! Mommy did you see how cool that was?! Could you teach me that?! Please" Galahad begged excitedly. "I suppose I could. Now the trick is-" Lancelot began to say before Elaine cleared her throat. "Perhaps we should do something else? How about we go see if the others are playing soccer?" Elaine suggested as she took Galahad's hand.

The three of them then walked out of the exhibit and into the employee lounge area. When they walked in, they saw Sacajawea, Atilla, and Ahkmenrah sitting on the couch with a large bowl of popcorn. Dexter and Able got off of Galahad and Elaine's shoulders and they went over to Atilla who had the large bowl of popcorn. While Atilla was feeding Able and Dexter popcorn, Irissa had finished stirring Ahkmenrah's tea and when she handed it to him, he blew into the cup to cool it down before he started sipping it. "Oh sorry. We did not mean to interrupt anything." Elaine said as she and Galahad started to walk out. Lancelot sat down in between Atilla and Ahkmenrah. "Hey! That's my spot!" Craig said as he burst in through the door holding a box of doughnuts. Craig then nudged himself between Lancelot and Ahkmenrah. "No one sits beside my Ahkie but me!" He said as he unwrapped his mouth and shoved a doughnut in it. "How about this? Looks like it is just about to start" Sacajawea asked as she put on the wrestling channel. "Oh Elaine, Galahad. Please come join us! I am making some fresh tea. Would you care for some?" Irissa said with a smile as she put a pot on the stove. "We would love to" Elaine responded as she and Galahad sat down at the table in the then put down a plate of what looked like Egyptian cookies. "Those are called Kahk. Try it. You may like it." Iris said as she noticed Galahad looking at them. "Hey Mama, why are they fighting?" Galahad asked. "They are play fighting. No one gets hurt for real. It's almost like putting on a show!" Elaine told Galahad as she took a cookie off of the plate and handed it to Galahad. After a few minutes of watching people wrestle, one of the wrestlers set the ring on fire. "These people are in grave danger." Lancelot said as he sat up and leaned on his left knee. "I am a knight of the round table! It is my duty to save them!" He finished saying as he stood up and walked out of the room. "Do you think we should tell him?" Sacajawea asked as she watched Lancelot walk out. "We should. It'd be a lot more fun if we don't" Ahkmenrah said as he put down his cup and scooted away from Craig. "You are so mean darling" Irissa said as she filled up Ahkmenrah's cup. Ahkmenrah then looked at her and gave her a kiss. Before she could walk away, he grabbed her waist and pulled Irissa into his lap. "Am I? Admit it. It would be a lot more fun" Ahkmenrah said before kissing her. "All I do is put out fires!" they heard Lancelot say as he walked back into the room with a fire extinguisher. Ahkmenrah and Iris pulled away from each other when Lancelot pointed the fire extinguisher at the television screen. "Lancelot don't!" Sacagawea yelled as Irissia leaped out of Ahkmenrah's embrace to try to grab the fire extinguisher from Lancelot's hands. She grabbed the nozzle of it as she fell onto the floor. "Silly daddy!" Galahad laughed. "What's going on in here?" Tilly asked as she and Laa walked in. "Here Tilly. Take this please" Irissa asked Tilly as she handed her the fire extinguisher. Tilly took it and put it on the table. "Do I even want to know?" Tilly asked as she motioned to the fire extinguisher on the table and Irissa on the floor. "Depends" Elaine responded casually as she took a sip of her tea. "This tea is absolutely heavenly" she mused. "It's not a god! It's just regular herbal tea. The only thing heavenly about it, is it's taste" Irissa responded as she lay face down on the floor.


	18. Chapter 18

Part 2 Chapter 8: A Reignited Flame

That next night, everything was the same as usual. Almost everything anyway. Lancelot and Elaine were fighting as usual. While Galahad was playing with the huns, Lancelot and Elaine were in their exhibit fighting. Their fight this time seemed more intense. "Why won't you allow me to spend time with our son? Why can't you just let the past be in the past?!" Lancelot said as he and Elaine argued. "I don't want him turning into a vain and pompous jerk like you!" Elaine responded. Hearing their arguing, Larry came bursting into the room. "Okay you two that's enough!" he yelled as he got in between Lancelot and Elaine. "We are all starting to get really sick and tired of you two always fighting! Come with me! We are ending it now!" Larry yelled as he grabbed both of their arms and drug them to the Egyptian exhibit. "Irissa, Ahk. You two busy?" He asked as he let go of Lancelot's and Elaine's arms "Fighting again?" Irissa asked as Ahkmenrah hung his tablet back on the wall. "I'm surprised that you two couldn't hear them fighting from here" Larry commented. "Oh we did. We were just about go investigate" Ahkmenrah responded. "Do you guys think you could help clear up whatever these two have?" Larry asked. "Of course! We used to do it all the time back in Egypt" Irissa responded.

"Now then, Elaine you stand over here and Lancelot you stand right there What were they arguing about?" Ahkmenrah told them as he pointed to separate spots in the room. "Now then, here is what we are going to do. Until you both find a way to find a middle ground with each other and be co parents, Galahad shall be put next to the Easter Island Head in the hall" Ahkmenrah said. "What?!" Lancelot and Elaine said at the same time. "You heard him. Until you two can kiss and make up, Galahad shall remain with the Easter Island head during the day and at night, Atilla and the others shall look after him" Irissia told them. "For now, why don't you two go to the lounge and talk things out?" Irissia suggested. "Larry, take Galahad to Atilla and the others please" Ahkmenrah said as he looked at Larry. Larry then nodded and started to walk out the door. "You shall do no such thing dangly bells!" Lancelot yelled to Larry as he walked out of the exhibit. Larry then turned to face Lancelot with narrowed eyes. "Oh yeah? Watch me" Larry taunted before he walked out of the room. Ahkmenrah and Irissia then escorted Lancelot and Elaine to the lounge and locked them in there. After Ahkmenrah locked the door, Lancelot tried to kick the door open only to fail. "So Lancelot, you really want me to give you a second chance?" Elaine asked him as Lancelot sat down across from her at the table. "Well obviously" Lancelot said as he put his sword down on the floor. "And why should I give you a chance?" Elaine asked him as she sat back in her seat. "Well for one, look at me! I'm smart, strong, witty, and not to mention devilishly handsome!" Lancelot replied as she started to boast and brag about himself. "Besides, whether you like it or not, I am Galahad's father and since we literally can't die anymore, we are going to be together for the rest of eternity and we may as well spend it as a family! Either way, we wouldn't even be in here like this if it wasn't for dangly bells!" Lancelot exclaimed. "You know his name is Lawrence right? Not Dangly Bells" Elaine said. "Yes,but he reminds me of Eric. You know, the fool from Camelot with the hat with the little" Lancelot started to say. "Dangly bells" Lancelot and Elaine said at the exact same time. They both then let out a small laugh before they sat in silence.

They then heard a soft knock before Larry entered the room. "How's it going in here?" he asked. Lancelot looked at Elaine. "Things are going.. Well" she responded. "I have an idea" he said as he handed Lancelot and Elaine pieces of paper and a pencil. "I want you both to write down things that you would like to happen and to stop happening regarding the other person. You two aren't allowed to talk to each other until you are both finished" Larry said. After a few moments, Elaine and Lancelot had completed their lists. "So, here is what we came up with so far..." Elaine said as she started to read. "I am going to give Lancelot a chance, let him spend time with Galahad, and let him try to be a good father" Elaine read off of her list. "In turn, I am going to try to be more aware of people and their feelings. However, Elaine you are not to push me away from Galahad and you will let all bad events from the past stay in the past" Lancelot said as she looked over at Elaine. "Alright, but you are not to be bragging and gloating all the time. I am willing to let the bad events stay in the past if you don't mention it. Deal?" Elaine responded as she held out a hand. "Deal" Lancelot said happily took her hand and shook it. Before letting go of her hand, he gently kissed it. "Now to make it official" Larry said as he took the pieces of paper from them and he left the room.

Larry came back moments later with the pieces of paper signed by Teddy, Ahkmenrah, Irissia, and what appeared to be Atilla the Hun's signature. "I made copies of these for me to keep just incase one of you two tries to lose your copies. I stored the copy in a safe place where neither of you two will ever find" he said. "Now you two are free to go spend time with your son" he said as he held the door open for Lancelot and Elaine. Lancelot ushered Larry out and he held the door for Elaine. The two then went off to find Galahad.

Once they found him playing with the huns, Galahad was quick to run to his parents and give them a hug. "What do you say we go play with Dexter and Able" Elaine suggested. Galahad nodded excitedly and he took both of his parent's hands as they walked to where Dexter and Able were.

After they walked into the main lobby, Dexter and Able spotted Elaine and they went over to her and climbed on her shoulders. "Hi Dexty, hi Able" Galahad greeted cheerfully as he pet them both. He then held his arm out to Able and she climbed onto his arm. "Ah, hello Dexter, hello Able" Lancelot greeted as he pat Able's head. He then went to pet Dexter. Dexter raised an arm and slapped Lancelot. "Ow!" Lancelot exclaimed as he resisted slapping him back. Dexter smiled and went onto Galahad's free arm. "I see you two finally made up" Irissia said as she and Ahkmenrah walked hand in hand with Craig following closely behind them. "Auntie Iris, Unkle Ahkie, Uncle Craig!" Galahad said happily as he ran to them and hugged them. "Look, Able and Dexter like me" Galahad said as he motioned to Able on his shoulder. "That's wonderful" Ahkmenrah said as he pat his head. Elaine and Lancelot then went over to Irissia, Ahkmenrah, and Craig.

"Yes. Lawrence helped us. I must say, it feels rather nice to get along with him instead of always fighting" Elaine said. "Well that's good to hear! Hopefully there will be no more fighting" Ahkmenrah said as he glanced over at Lancelot. "I do hope that we will be good parents together. I know Elaine raised Galahad and I am grateful that I get to be in his life" Lancelot replied. Elaine smiled and Lancelot kissed her cheek. Elaine touched the spot where he kissed her. Out of the corners of their eyes, they saw Atilla approach Galahad. "Mama, Papa, can I go play with the huns?" Galahad asked. Elaine and Lancelot looked at each other and nodded. "Of course you can sweetheart" Elaine responded. Galahad happily hugged his parents and he then left with Atilla. After Galahad left with Atilla and the others, Trixie came bursting in. "Trixie sit! "Lancelot said. Trixie sat as he ordered and Lancelot pat her head. "Good girl" he praised and she wagged her tail. Irissia and Ahkmenrah smiled at each other as Ahkmenrah took Craig by the arm and he dragged him out as they left the room.

Elaine glanced over at him as she pet Able before she lowered them to the ground. She then watched as Dexter and Able scampered off when they heard Larry in the next room.

"There's something sweet and almost kind

But he was mean and he was coarse and unrefined

And now he's dear and I'm unsure

I wonder why I didn't see it there before" Elaine sang as she glanced at Lancelot who was playing with Trixie. Lancelot noticed her gaze. He noted that it seemed loving and kind instead of full of spite and hatred. He glanced over at Elaine. She looked away once Lancelot caught her gaze.

"She glanced this way, I thought I saw

And when we touched she didn't try to punch my jaw

No, it can't be, I'll just ignore

But then she's never looked at me that way before" Lancelot sang as he pet Trixie. He then walked with her over to Galahad who was playing with Attila and his huns.

"New and a bit alarming

Who'd have ever thought that this could be

True, that he's no Prince Charming

But there's something in him that I simply didn't see" Elaine sang as she watched him praise Galahad and ruffle his hair as he showed him a trick that Attila taught him. As Teddy was riding with Jed and Octavius on his shoulder, they stopped when they saw how Lancelot and Elaine were looking at each other.

"Well, who'd have thought?" Jed sang.

"Well, bless their souls" Teddy sang.

"Well, who'd have known?" Octavius sang.

"Well, who indeed?" Teddy sang as he raised a leg and rested it on the saddle.

"And who'd have guessed They'd come together on their own?" Jed sang as he threw an arm around Octavius.

"It's so peculiar" Teddy sang.

"Let's wait and see, a few days more" Jed sang.

"There may be something there that wasn't there before" Jed and Octavius sang.

"You know perhaps there is something there that wasn't there before" Octavious sang.

"There may be something there that wasn't there before" Teddy sang. He then lowered his leg and put his foot in the stirrup. He then lightly squeezed his legs against the saddle and let out a small clicking noise and Tex began to walk.

Lancelot then put Galahad on Trixie and then he walked over towards Elaine

_Song is Something There from Beauty and the Beast_


	19. Chapter 19

Part 2 Chapter 9: A Happy Family

The next night, while Elaine was talking with Irissia and Sacagawea, Lancelot was talking with Ahkmenrah, Larry, and Teddy. "So, things between you and Elaine are going well" Larry commented. "Yes. However, I do want to romantically win her back. The thing is, I am not quite sure how" Lancelot said. Larry then turned to Teddy and Ahkmenrah. "Do you guys have any ideas?" Larry asked them. "Well, how did you two first meet?" Teddy asked.

"The sorceress Morgan le Fay was jealous of Elaine's beauty so she magically trapped her in a boiling bath. After I heard about the damsel in distress, I set off and rescued her. After I did rescue her, Elaine fell in love with me. However, at that time I was in love with Queen Guinevere and I would have never slept with any other woman that wasn't Guinevere. After I rejected her, Elaine ended up asking the sorceress Dame Brusen for help. Dame Brusen then gave me wine and she gave Elaine a ring of Guinevere's in order to trick me into thinking she was Guinevere. The next morning after I woke up, I discovered that the woman I slept with was not Guinevere. I drew my sword and I threatened to kill Elaine, but she told me that she was pregnant with Galahad. So, I ended up agreeing not to kill her" Lancelot explained. "Then what did you do?" Ahkmenrah asked. "I kissed her and then I departed. After that, Elaine remained in her father's castle and gave birth to Galahad and after his birth, King Arthur held a feast in his court to celebrate Galahad's birth and of course Elaine attended. I ended up ignoring her when I saw her and apparently she was upset because she was so in love with me" Lancelot said.

Larry then took out his phone and he looked something up. "According to the legends, she complained to Dame Brusen, and Dame Brusen told her that she will and I quote, 'undertake that this night he shall lie with her' and that night, Dame Brusen brought you to Elaine who was pretending that she was Guinevere and she summoned you. You went and once again slept with Elaine. At the same time, Guinevere herself summoned you and she was enraged to discover that he were not in your bedchamber. She heard you talking in your sleep and she found you in bed with Elaine" Larry read off his phone. "What else does it say?" Lancelot asked. "She was furious with you and she told you that she never wanted to see you again. You ended up going mad with grief and" Larry paused. "What?" Lancelot asked. "You uh, got naked, jumped out a window and ran away" Larry said in shock. The men were silent for a moment trying to process the information. Teddy took Larry's phone and read what was on the screen. "Elaine confronted Guinevere about to her treatment of you. She accused Guinevere of causing your madness and told her that she is being unnecessarily cruel and she left the court. Time passes Elaine finds Lancelot insane in her garden. She brings him to the Holy Grail, which ends up curing him. When he loses his insanity, he decides to live with Elaine, and they live in a beautiful house in the countryside together for several years as man and wife with their son Galahad" Teddy read. Larry, Ahkmenrah, and Teddy looked at Lancelot. Lancelot slowly sank to the floor as he processed the information. "However, when we first met you, you were looking for the holy grail so your Elaine might not have tricked you the second time" Larry smiled brightly once he had an idea. "The way I see it, that was Elaine' s way of proving to you that she loves you. She wanted you to love her but you were in love with Guinevere at the time. Perhaps you should do a grand gesture of your own to prove to her that you love her" Ahkmenrah suggested. "And we'll help you in any way we can" Teddy said as he put a hand on Lancelot's shoulder. "What about Dexter? He does not seem to like me like Able does" Lancelot said. "Dexter didn't like me at first. On my first Night Guard shift, Dexter caused me a lot of trouble. He tore up the list that I was using to help me, stole my keys, and unlocked the storage gate that released all the exhibits into Central Park" Larry said as he explained how Dexter got to like him. "So what do you suggest I do?" Lancelot asked. Dexter then went to where the men were talking and he climbed onto Larry's shoulder. "Dexter, how can Lancelot get you to like him?" Larry asked. Dexter made a few noises, smiled, and he raised his hand. They turned to Ahkmenrah for a translation. "He said he wants you to let him smack you" Ahkmenrah explained. "You already did that earlier" Lancelot said. Dexter made a few more noises and Ahkmenrah cleared his throat. "Yes but that was for Elaine. He would like to smack you again because he wants to" he translated. "But why?" Lancelot asked. Dexter made a few noises and Lancelot looked at Ahkmenrah. "Because he feels like it" Ahkmenrah said. "Very well" Lancelot said with a sigh. Dexter let out what sounded like a laugh and he smacked Lancelot. Once satisfied, Dexter got off of Larry's shoulder and scampered off.

"What do you suggest I do as my grand gesture? I know Elaine is still mad about Guinevere and I want to prove to her that I love her and only her " Lancelot said. "Perhaps a poem. I used to write a lot of them for Iris. If you would like, I would be happy to help you" Ahkmenrah suggested. "I have an idea!" they heard someone yell. They looked towards the voice to see Craig running towards them. "What is your idea Craig?" Ahkmenrah asked. "You could give her a whole box of doughnuts! I know if anyone did that for me I'd love them forever!" Craig suggested happily as he looked at Ahkmenrah. "I'm not getting you any more doughnuts!" Ahkmenrah said. "But Ahkie~" Craig whined. "No!" Ahkmenrah responded. "But Ahkie, don't you love me?" Craig asked. "I never said that I loved you Craig" Ahkmenrah said to him. "Ha! You just did!" Craig said joyfully as he laughed.

"What are you boys talking about?" Irissia asked as she walked over. "Lance wants to do some sort of grand romantic gesture for Elaine to prove that he loves her and hopefully win her back" Larry said. "Why not surprise her with a romantic dinner scene and read her poem? Ahkmenrah used to write poems and letters for me find all of the time! And after I found them all, the last one would reveal one last location for me to go to and there would be Ahkmenrah waiting for me" she suggested. "How about the planetarium? We can take some decorations out of storage and use what we find to create a romantic scene for her!" Irissia added as Ahkmenrah took her hand in his. "What a wonderful idea!" Ahkmenrah said as he lifted Irissia's hand and kissed it. "I remember when he had me running around the palace and the city only to have me come back to the palace courtyard. And there he was, all dressed up holding a bouquet of my favorite flowers and behind him was a marvelous dinner!" Irissia said as she lovingly looked at Ahkmenrah. "Do you think she'll like that?" Lancelot asked. "Guys, I think we have a plan going. Lancelot, you and Ahk go start writing the poems, Irissia, could you please come help me get the decorations for the planetarium and do you know how you are going to distract her while Teddy, Ahk, Lancelot, and I set everything up?" Larry asked. "Just leave it all to me" Irissia suggested. "Great! Let's go Iris. Are you guys good to get started?" Larry asked. "We'll be fine Lawrence" Teddy said. The group then went their separate ways.

The next night, Irissia was quick to go to Elaine once she, Lancelot, and Galahad woke up. "Irissia, what a pleasant surprise. It's wonderful to see you. Isn't it Lancelot?" Elaine asked. She turned to see if he was awake and she was surprised to see that he was gone. Irissia took her hand. "I was hoping that we could spend some more time together" she said. Atilla and his huns then entered the room and Atilla picked up Galahad and carried him off. "Shall we go then?" Irissia asked. "Of course" Elaine said and the girls walked out of the Medieval Exhibit. While the guys were setting up Lancelot's plan, Irissia took Elaine with her to check on everyone. Once they were finished, they saw a note on the wall in the Medieval Exhibit with Elaine's name on it. "What's this?" Elaine wondered as she took the note and read it. "_My dearest Elaine, go to a place where knowledge is what you hope to gain and to where your search is never in vain_" Elaine read. "The archives?" Elaine asked. Irissia shrugged and the girls made their way to the archives. Once they got there, they saw a note with Elaine's name sticking out of a book about Medieval times. "_Your beautiful skin is without a scratch. Next head to a place where you should never light a match. _The neanderthals perhaps?" Elaine questioned after she read the note. Once they got to the neanderthal exhibit, they saw Tilly with Laa and the other neanderthals.

"Hey Elaine, hey Irissia. So I have this note from a secret admirer for you both" Tilly said with a wink as she handed both of the girls a note. "_With just time and some soft candlelight, you'll be my maiden and I, your brave knight. So find the place where it is always night and you will find me under a spotlight_. Perhaps the planetarium" Elaine said as she read hers. "My dearest jewel, there is never a moment when I don't think of you. You are always kind but never afraid to duel. Go to the place where it is always cool and may your heart be your tool" Irissia read with a smile. "Well then, I guess we're going to the planetarium" Elaine said.

Once they got there, they saw Lancelot holding a small bouquet of peonies. "Lancelot? What is all this?" Elaine asked in awe as she looked around at all of the decorations. "I want to prove to you that I really do love you and I will do whatever it takes to make sure that I can still be by your side. I know that you don't fully trust me, but I want to prove to you that I won't mess up. I vow to you here and now that I will be the best husband and father there ever was" Lancelot said. Elaine started to tear up and Lancelot took her in his arms and stroked her head. As the two embraced, Irissia leaned up against the wall and observed them. "Ahh. Young love" Irissia said with a smile. "Hm? What do you have there Dexter?" Irissia asked as she took the envelope from him. She then opened the letter as she walked out of the room and begun to read what was written. "_My dearest darling, my loving wife, we may have our conflicts and strifes, yet our bond has not be broken by even the strongest knife. You always bring joy into my life and without you there is no afterlife_" Irissia read to herself. "What's this?" Irissia asked herself as she noticed Able holding another envelope. Able handed it to her and Irissia opened it and began to read the second piece of paper. "_You are kind and always polite and being with you is like living in twilight. Come find me where we awake at night, by the glow of a certain light._" Irissia said as she finished reading. Holding the poems to her chest, she began to walk towards the Egypt exhibit. "Are you alright here Elaine?" Irissia asked as she walked back into the planetarium to check up on Elaine and Lancelot. She looked over to see Elaine and Lancelot dancing together. After watching them one last time, Irissia smiled at them and walked away. "I will just take that as a yes" Irissia commented before she left and made her way to the Egyptian Exhibit.

After following a trail of white flower petals all the way to the entrance of the Egypt exhibit. As she approached the large double doors, the guards opened them and she walked in. When she walked in, she saw Ahkmenrah standing in front of their sarcophagus display holding a bouquet of white Calla Lilies. "What is this for?" she asked him as he walked towards her. "I figured since we don't get to spend a lot of time together and since we helped Elaine and Lancelot, I figured you deserve your own _grand romantic gesture_. I know it may not be as grand as the ones that were long ago but you deserve it!" Ahkmenrah said as he took Irissia's hand and lightly kissed it. "Besides, when was the last time I did a romantic scavenger hunt for you?" He added. "I hope you don't mind the flowers being fake. I wanted you to always have them just like how we will always have each other" Ahkmenrah said as he handed her the flowers. "My darling, they could be a bouquet of rotting weeds and I would still love them. Do you know why?" Irissia asked. Ahkmenrah shook his head and she kissed his cheek. "Because they were from you" she said lovingly. Irissia then put the flowers down on her sarcophagus. She then walked back to Ahkmenrah and she wrapped her arms around his neck while he wrapped one of his arms around her waist and the other just below her shoulders in a tender yet loving embrace. "I love you Ahkmenrah" Irissia said as she sighed lovingly. "I love you more my queen" Ahkmenrah said lovingly as he began to stroke her back. The couple pulled away for a moment only to slowly lean in and share a loving kiss.


	20. Chapter 20

Part 2 Chapter 10: Past Truths

A few minutes past since the sun had set that next evening and everyone was going about their normal business. "Larry, Tilly. Do either of you have a moment?" Irissia asked Larry and Tilly after they walked out of the Egypt exhibit. "Yah. Sure. What's up? Is everything alright?" Larry asked as he hooked his keys onto the keyring on his belt. "Is Craig taking your stuff and playing dress up with it again?" Tilly asked. "No Tilly. Everything is fine. It's just that I wish to surprise Ahkmenrah for our anniversary and I am going to need your help. I want to do something special for him since our last one together didn't _exactly _go as well as we had wanted" Irissia said to them as she referred to her untimely death. "Gotcha. What did you have in mind?" Larry asked her. "We could throw a huge Ancient Egyptian themed party and invite all sorts of people! We could turn it into a fundraiser party for the museum!" Tilly said excitedly before Irissia could speak. "I was thinking of something simple" Irissia told them when Tilly calmed down. "Something simple? Like what?" Larry asked confused. "Well, I was hoping Ahkmenrah and I could go for a walk _outside _the museum. I was wondering if you could get some simple civilian clothes for us and allow us to go outside unnoticed. Of course we would be back before the sun rise" Irissia said. "Is that what you really want?" Larry asked as he questioned Irissia. Irissia then nodded her head. 'Yes it is. We could still have a fundraiser on that night too. Ahkmenrah and I could go on our walk, come back here and change and then make an appearance at the party!" Iris told him excitedly. "What's this I hear about a fundraiser?" Dr McPhee asked as he walked towards the main desk. "Iris and Ahk's anniversary is coming up next month and we were thinking of holding a fundraiser party for them to celebrate" Larry explained to Dr. McPhee. "A fundraiser party for the museum to celebrate an anniversary for the museum's most beloved exhibit? Hmm. I like it! I am so glad that I came up with it!" Dr. McPhee said as everyone tried to contain their laughter. "I shall go start the preparations! Good thing I have people on speed dial!" Dr. McPhee said as he eagerly walked to his office. "So about the other thing. Could we possible do that?" Irissia asked nervously. "We will see what we can do." Tilly said as Irissia smiled happily. "Thank you" Irissia said as Tilly hugged her. Irissia then walked off to join Shepseheret in the kitchen.

"Uncle Ahkie! Uncle Craig watch this!" Galahad said as he swung Atilla's sword. "Hey kid, that was actually pretty cool!" Craig said very amused. After a few minutes of Craig and Ahkmenrah playing with Galahad on the floor, Elaine and Lancelot walked out to where they were holding hands. "Having fun Galahad?" Elaine asked. "Yes mama!" Galahad responded with a big smile on his face. "Hey Mama, Papa, watch this!" Galahad said as he swung Atilla's sword again. "Tada!" Galahad said after he was finished. Lancelot and Elaine then clapped. "Marvelous job Galahad!" Lancelot said still clapping. "That was fantastic!" Elaine added. When they were finished clapping, Galahad ran to his parents and gave them both big hugs. "Come on Galahad, it is story time!" Elaine said as she and Lancelot held out their hands for Galahad. "Yay stories!" Galahad yelled in excitement as he took each of their hands. "Wait! You can't leave just yet! Ahkie don't let them take him!" Craig wined to Ahkmenrah. "I'm sorry Craig but there is nothing that I can do. Galahad is Lancelot and Elaine's son and they tell him what to do" Ahkmenrah said as he and Craig stood up from the floor and started walking back towards the Egyptian Exhibit.

"So wait, if _that _is _their_ child, then where is yours?" Craig said as he motioned over to Galahad, Elaine and Lancelot walking together. "What are you talking about Craig?" Ahkmenrah asked him. "You know you were going to be a father too right?" Craig replied to him even more confused. "How do you know?" Ahkmenrah asked Craig as he tried to figure out the truth. "Iris told me. The night of your anniversary while you were gone, I fell out of a tree and she told me" Craig replied. "Mother. Father. Have you seen where Iris went to?" Ahkmenrah asked as his parents as he and Craig entered their exhibit. "Why yes. She was in the kitchen when I last saw her. Why? Is everything alright my child?" Shepseheret questioned him as she inspected his face. "Everything is fine mother. I just need to speak with Iris" Ahkmenrah said as he was determined to find out the truth. "What is it that you need to speak to her about?" Merenkahre asked his son. "Oh I know this one!" Craig said as he raised his hand eagerly. "Ahkmenrah was supposed to be a father long ago and Iris didn't tell him" Craig said as he put his hand down. "You were going to be parents?" Merenkahre asked them in shock. "We were going to be grandparents?!" Shepseheret added. "I was going to be an uncle!" Craig said as he tried to include himself in the conversation. "I was going to show Craig Jr. how to be just as cool as I am!" Craig said proudly.

After everyone glared at Craig, a familiar voice was heard humming. When everyone looked to see where the humming was coming from, they saw it was Irissia. She was walking into the exhibit holding a plate of freshly baked cookies. "Hello all. Care for some? I just made them." Irissia asked them as she held out the plate for them. "Ohh cookies!" Craig said happily as he took the entire plate and started shoving them into his mouth. "Hello darling" Irissia said as she went to kiss Ahkmenrah on the cheek. "Irissia, stop. I know you are hiding something from me" Ahkmenrah started to say. "Ahem" Shepseheret said as she cleared her throat. "And my parents" Ahkmenrah added as Shepseheret smiled with approval. Irissia looked at them confused. "Me? Hiding something from you and your parents?" Irissia asked them confused. "Don't play dumb. Craig already told us. Is it true? When were you going to tell us?! What else aren't you telling us?!" Ahkmenrah asked her angrily. After thinking for a moment, Irissia finally realized what they were talking about. "Ahkmenrah my darling, please calm down. I know what you are talking about now. Yes it is true. I was once bearing your child" Irissia said with a sigh. "I tried to tell you _that night_, but we _both _know how well _that _went" Iris replied as she hung her head as she tried to hold back her tears.

After seeing how upset Irissia was, Ahkmenrah then put his hand on her shoulder. "Ahkmenrah please just don't" Irissia said as she took his hand off of her shoulder. "Iris, I am so sorry. I didn't mean to upset you." He told her as he lifted her head up. "I'm just sorry that I wasn't there to protect you _that night. _If I would have there, then I would have been able to protect you and we could have had our own family" Ahkmenrah said as he hugged Irissia tight. "There is no way to change the past now my son." Merenkahre told him as he put his hand on Ahkmenrah's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault my child. There was no way of predicting it" Shepseheret said as she placed her hand on Ahkmenrah's other shoulder to try to console him. "Listen Ahk, I know that you feel guilty for not protecting our unborn child and me when I was killed, but the past is the past and we can't change that. No one knew what was going to happen. But all that matters now is that we have each other and that will never change." Iris said as they pulled away from each other's embrace and she put her hand on Ahkmenrah's face as they stared into each other's eyes. "Besides, Craig is already a handful" Irissia said playfully as they watched Craig shove the last cookie into his mouth and devour it.

* * *

To all the readers who enjoyed and are following 'What Might Have Been'

Be sure to read 'The Unexpected Crossover' (It comes out next week)

After it's done, 'What Might Have Been' WILL return and these events are important!

And to everyone who enjoyed 'Ancient Love' be sure to read 'The Unexpected Crossover'

Thank you to everyone who has voted for these stories!


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